We aren't doing Santa. These simple words have elicited shocked, horrified, and distraught responses from people who are worried that not having Santa in his life will ultimately lead Micah to a life of serious crime... or something like that :) I guess I just don't get the deal with Santa. I wasn't raised with Santa, so it would never have occurred to me to raise my kids with Santa. My parents never made a big deal out of the fact that we didn't do Santa, we just.... well.... we didn't do the whole Santa thing. All of our gifts were marked "From Mom and Dad" and it never occurred to me that I might be missing something. I'm not anti-Santa, I'm just not going to make him a part of our Christmases.
People always ask me why we have made this decision, like I must have a defined and consequential reason. Well, it started as me just not thinking about doing it since it was never a part of my childhood. Only after the decision was made did I ever think about the reasons someone might have to cut Santa out of the mix. My parents made their decision because they simply didn't feel comfortable about lying to us. My mom thought it might cause confusion later when trying to explain that they had made up Santa, but God (who is also invisible and magical) was real and important. They didn't bash Santa, they just didn't include him either.
Anyways, I want to clarify that I don't think it is wrong to do Santa with your kids, I am just choosing not to. I am working on other traditions to make Christmas a time for the kid(s) to look forward to as really special and fun.... although I will miss hanging that naughty list thing over their heads as an inducement to behave :P
10 comments:
I concur! Be sure to vote on our "Santa" poll on our blog...very timely for your post!!
We didn't do Santa either. My parents didn't want to lie to us. We also didn't trick-or-treat. We went to a Christmas store and bought ornaments every year.
We did Santa and I never felt like my parents lied to me when I found out he wasn't real. We also did the tooth fairy, easter bunny, etc.
My parents did make sure that Santa didn't give us our best gifts though because they didn't want us to pretend to believe even when we knew better, just to keep getting presents!
Whether you do Santa or not (and I'm sure we will with our kids), I think the most important thing is just to make sure they know that Christmas is about Jesus and not Santa. As long as that's in perspective, all is well!
One thing Abby - have you thought about how you're going to make sure Micah doesn't spoil the "magic" for kids that do still believe? Just curious. I know some parents get really upset over all of that.
I will iterate what Abby originally blogged about how we are not saying anything against anyone who does do the whole Santa thing. We are making a choice to not add anything more to what has already been added to the celebration of Christ's birth. Again, this is just the way we are planning to do things :)
Carisaa, as to your question about what we are going to do to make sure Micah doesn't spoil the magic...we can't. We plan to tell the story of St. Nicholas so that way he knows that beautiful story of Christian giving. We will tell him that he doesn't need to go around shouting "Santa isn't real" (but he is fallen and he might anyhow). But we won't tell him to lie and say that he does exist. If he does spoil it for some kid and a parent gets mad then it might be a great opportunity for us to share about Jesus! Plus, should I have to apologize for my kid telling the truth?? I'll proudly back him on the truth any day of the week!!
Nate perhaps responded a little more matter of fact than I was planning :) I never ruined Santa for any of my friends growing up. The way my parents did it was that when we were too young to have a filter, they would tell us it was Santa when we would see him and ask about him and they told us where the idea of Santa came from, without saying that he wasn't real or dwelling on it.
When we got old enough, they did tell us that he wasn't real and stressed that we should not tell this to the kids who believe in him. As far as I remember, it worked. I could not have cared less about Santa and didn't have any desire to believe in him or ruin it for anyone else who did.
i love this idea...i hope to raise any kids that God blesses Chris and I with in the same manner. :)
This post has been enough to finally make me come out of hiding. :) Abby, I don't think you know me, but Nate was in our wedding (I think you left for France or somewhere out of Texas the day before we got married). I agree with your Santa plans. I was raised without Santa as well, and I never felt cheated or deprived. My parents kept Christmas about Jesus, and as we got older and saw Santa in the mall, they told us the stories about Santa as well. When my mom explained that some children thought he brought gifts, I remember thinking the idea of an old man coming into my house at night was a little weird!
Interestingly, my brother event went to sit on Santa's lap of his own choice when he was about five, but I had no desire since I knew he held no control over the presents. :)
Hey Carissa (and everyone else)! Sorry if my post sounded harsh...I didn't mean for it to be!!
My parents never said anything about Santa. When I was 4 I looked at my mom and said, "There is no Santa." She told me I was right and we moved on. My youngest sister however believed in him, so they did it for her. I kinda like that way. We did the tooth fairy though.
Just wanted to clarify - I wasn't bashing you for not having Santa as part of Micah's childhood either. I don't have any problem with what parents teach their own kids about Santa and such. And if my child makes it to kindergarten believing in Santa and then some kid spoils it for him, so be it. But I know some parents don't feel that way, and just wondered if you guys had thought about how you would plan to have Micah handle things with other kids who have been taught to believe in Santa.
I think this lady's blog pretty well expresses my sentiments on Santa - http://betterthingsahead.com/my-stance-on-the-man-in-red/ - basically, a little fantasy is good for a child. That doesn't have to mean Santa, but for my kids, that will be part of it! :)
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