Is there anyone who does not use Santa?

[toomanyshoes]

Not to offend anyone but I treat it the same way as religion. DS always come's home asking about "god" and I explain to him that some people believe in it and others don't but both beliefs are right.

We've had to deal with the "so and so said santa isn't real" and I've explained it the same way.

[Persephone1]

It's too early for us but we're not planning on having a Santa at our Christmas celebrations. At the most we might refer to Santa in Christmas stories (like the Night Before Christmas) but he'll be a minor aspect of Christmas. We're also not religious, so Santa might be one aspect, and Jesus might be another, and together they can be "beliefs that some people have" but that we don't.

I see Santa and the Tooth Fairy in the same light - not as a "lie" as such, but as another story. I don't feel comfortable telling my son things like "Santa doesn't visit children who are bad."

I expect we'll have some opposition from peers and family, and there will be some challenges when DS works out that other families have Santa and we don't. But again, we don't follow a religion either, so we'll be having similar discussions about Jesus, etc.

[angelaartsstudent]

I don't mind if other people use Santa, but I won't be. DH and I have the belief that xmas should be based more on spending time with family and giving thanks for all the things we have - love, care, family members, a roof over our heads, enough food, health etc - than on presents.

We will be giving presents....but not a whole room full, and none from Santa.

I don't mind Santa or people using it...but I think that some people take the commercialism and gift thing a bit too far.

The only reason I wont be using Santa is that I cannot bring myself to lie to my child. DH has a totally different stance...he's against the commercialism but not against the 'lying'...he wants P to experience the magic he felt at xmas a a kid, but just without Santa...and we're not sure how to do that.

[angelaartsstudent]

PS - I am 24 and still get a santa sack from my Mum. :-P

[Just Me]

Angela - I think it is about making your own traditions that make it special. For some people that does involve Santa, but for others, it doesn't. Things like special food that you only eat at Christmas, enjoying family time together putting up the Christmas tree, what you do when you unwrap presents, how you spend Christmas day, things that you can do in the lead up to Christmas - I think it is things like that that make it special.

We do advent for our kids so for us, December is a whole month of lead up to Christmas but our advent is not about them getting a present everyday - we do activities based advent. We try and make it a bit of a festival for our kids - some days we go somewhere special, on other days we do craft or cooking or we do something for someone else. At the moment we have limited our days where we do things for others to making presents, cards and wrapping paper but as they get older, we will probably do volunteer work somewhere as a family (the kids are a bit little at the moment and I think we wouldn't be that helpful if we volunteered somewhere). We also have other things like Christmas light looking, going to Carols and a Christmas party on our Advent Calendar. We put it on the wall last weekend and the kids are already excited - each day they get an envelope with information about today's activity.

There are lots of ways to make Christmas special without Santa and without being commercial too. I think you just have to go out there and figure out what things you find special and how you want to spend it and make it something that you look forward to every year

[beckoes]

i knew from an early age that santa wasnt real, but i got a christmas stocking from santa till i left home....and i went home for christmas a few years ago for a few weeks and got a stocking then too.... my mum cant help herself
DD loved seeing santa at the shops and i have and will continue to explain it in a way that she will be able to make her own mindup....some people belive etc etc....i think its harmless and part of the joy and wonder of christmas and being a child, but i dont like the thought of using it as a tool to make a child behave...santa wont come if your bad etc.
i think you just have to explain it in a way were your kids understand that not every one belives the same thing, which is part of life anyway.

[Moi]

DH and I have the belief that xmas should be based more on spending time with family and giving thanks for all the things we have - love, care, family members, a roof over our heads, enough food, health etc - than on presents.

Yeah that's how I feel too. I think putting an emphasis on Santa puts an emphasis on presents, but I want Christmas to be about spending time with family. I feel that Santa has become a commercial commodity. The lying doesn't bother me so much. It's more the commercialism. I also hate it when people use Santa as a threat i.e. "if you're bad you won't get any gifts this year!" My MIL says it all the time to my nieces. The thing is no matter what they do anyway they WILL always get gifts so it's a pointless threat really.

Just Me - I love your advent idea. What a great way to celebrate Christmas. I might have to steal your idea. I also like what you said about creating your own family traditions because really I guess that's what I am trying to do. Like I wasn't sure whether to get a tree or not either, which is commercial too. But I have decided you only buy a tree once and I would enjoy the tradition of decorating it with my family. I also do want to give DD gifts, just not from Santa. And I really want the day to be about spending time with family and giving rather than receiving.

[Nelle]

We're not really into Santa here either - but for me it's because of a God thing, I don't know how I feel about telling my kids God is real (which I believe) and that Santa is real (which I don't believe). But I'm totally happy to say 'what do you think' when they ask, pretty sure that's how my parents rolled. I remember saying 'I don't believe in Santa' when I was young, and my mum implying that if word got out, then Santa wouldn't bring me presents. I changed my 'official' tune to toe the line, I think this was mum's insurance against me ruining it for other kids.

[Just Me]

Moi - if you are interested, this is our advent calendar for this year:

1st - Gift - Story of Christmas Sticker Book (A page a day to complete together and read the story during December)
2nd - Making Christmas tree decoration
3rd - Lollipops Outing
4th - Take kids present shopping for each other
5th - Christmas Treasure Hunt
6th - Cooking Rumballs
7th - Playtime Christmas Party
8th - Making presents
9th - Shopping for a Christmas decoration for the tree
10th - Christmas movie & pizza night
11th - Picnic on Magnetic Island
12th - Carols by Candlelight
13th - Cooking Christmas star tree
14th - Making cards
15th - Fury Game
16th - Making Christmas wrapping paper
17th - McDonalds lunch with Daddy
18th - Swimming at Water Park and Picnic Day
19th - Christmas Movie night
20th - Cooking Marshmallow Christmas trees
21st - Stable on the Strand
22nd - Sizzler and Christmas light looking
23rd - Christmas Eve Eve Party
24th - Stable on the Strand Carols

I write a corny poem and print it out on a digitally scrapbooked card to put in our calendar. Our calendar is a paper one that we make with the kids and decorate - it's using origami. We just get Christmassy looking scrapbooking paper and I fold them into the pockets. The kids then decorate the pockets and I stick them on a bit piece of cardboard and each of the cards for the day go inside.

We also set up our tree in November - DH starts nagging me about it in October because he loooooves Christmas. We spend a couple of days making special food beforehand and send the kids a letter in the mail to tell them when we are setting up the tree. We have call it our Christmas Tree Party, we play Christmas music and eat food that we shouldn't and afterwards this year, we had a 'Christmas Dinner' - roast ham & veggies with a special dessert and we use up all last year's left over bon bons. The kids thought it was fantastic and we had fun.

The other nice thing about the Christmas tree party is that all the decorations that they have made or picked for our tree come out and the kids just love looking at them - they don't remember making or chosing some of them, but they love it when we tell them about it. We also have a photo of each of them on our tree from their first Christmas and they love seeing their baby photo on our Christmas tree too.

I also get the kids a special outfit to wear through December when we have Christmas parties and carols to go to. This year, I made the girls a no sew red and white tutu with a plain white T-shirt that I have attached some boutique bows to for decoration. They get a new party dress to wear on Christmas day. I take photos of them in their special Christmas outfits and when we make the cards during Advent, they make a card they can slot a photo of themselves into so everyone gets a photo of each of my kids for Christmas every year as well.

When we make Christmas presents for everyone, we try to make them practical art - things people can use around the house. This year DD1 is painting a pencil holder for each couple (Grandparents, Aunts, Uncles, Special Friends), DS is painting some wooden placemats and DD2 will paint a canvas (DD1 and DS have painted a canvas for everyone at the same age). In other years we have painted plain cloth shopping bags, plate and mug drawings, made coasters (Big W sells sets of 6 glass coasters for photos - we put paintings in them instead of photos).

Christmas is pretty intense in our house but we treat it more like a festival. We love Christmas time

[Taurean]

Just me - I LOVE your Christmas ideas!! You are such a gorgeous, creative and fun family. Can I come and live at your house??? LOL