Need help thinking up an excuse for Santa

quidsy

There is nothing wrong with our decision to not follow the crowd

You are following a crowd, just a herd with a different point of view, no better, no worse.

balletshoes

notanewuser wrote: »

Right, lets clear up something else that's been misread.

I DID NOT say that DH and I were "scarred for life" by the whole Santa thing. What I said was that we both REMEMBER the disappointment at finding out. That's 2 children, each brought up very differently to one another, almost 300 miles apart, with the same recollection.
Were I an stanislavskian actress it would be my go-to memory for the emotional response surrounding disappointment.
Having to continue the pretence on the say-so of our parents didn't feel good FOR US either.

There is nothing wrong with our decision to not follow the crowd. Every single one of DD's classmates might get given an iPad for Xmas aged 5 - that doesn't mean DD will be getting one just so that she's "not left out". Where will it end?!!!

and mine would be the 2nd time i failed my driving test.

HPoirot

In my experience, most children have worked out by the age of 8 that Santa does not exist, but go along with it because it is still exciting to have presents appearing out of nowhere during the night - how / when did mum and dad get them / wrap them up / put them out? It is also another kind of excitement when the parent swears blind that they play no part in it and it's all Santa's doing - the 'I know better than you thought' stuff that kids like.

iammumtoone if I were you I would just wrap them and put them out for him - many children find out about Santa after they have gone snooping around the house - no harm done ever.

quidsy

My sister & I used to find them every year, wrapped up, we would then open them a bit to see what was inside then reseal them badly, my mum would find ever more difficult places to store them but it was a game for us & her to try to out wit each other. One year she caught my sister giving me a boost intot he loft at midnight one night It never dimished the fantasy of santa nor the magic of the whole time so I am sure the op's son will still have a magical time of it.

iammumtoone

OrkneyStar wrote: »

The main downside I can see with santa is 1. why does santa give more/better to child x/y/z- have I not been good? 2. using it to bribe kids. 3. perhaps some are a bit upset/sad when they realise it's not true!

point 1 - I have often wondered about this myself, on plenty of occasions like all parents I get so and so has this/is allowed to do this etc. However I have never heard this comment made about the stuff Santas brings (I would be interested to hear if anyones child has raised this). I think its because as adults we over think things, as children they probably just say Santa delivered the presents and I got xxx which I wanted, I doubt they go into detail about exactly how many Santa brought and how many aunty xxx brought.

point 2 - personally I don't use Santa to bride, I have never mentioned a good and naughty list (ds does know of such a list as he had heard about it from others!). The reason I don't use it is he is going to get the presents whatever, he knows if he has been naughty so if he was naughty and still got presents that would teach him that I don't stick to my word. I never threaten anything I can't carry through, I am not one to say either if you dont do x we are not going to y, especially if y is a big event and something I can't get out of.

point 3 - not sure on this one, he might be a little upset yes, but children can't be sheltered from life and upset is a part of life, I appreciate where you are coming from it would be a upset I created, however I upset him last night when I said he couldn't have an ice cream before tea, he got over it, it might take him a bit longer to get over the bigger upset of Santa (if he is even upset by it) but he will do.

edit to point 2: I must admit at this time of year I do tell him Santa would like him to start to try to get some more sleep in practice for the big day when he comes but I have never said if he doesn't he wont come or threaten anything by it, I just say Santa has asked. It worked last year, this year it hasn't - another sign he is getting older and the magic is starting to wear off

poet123

Santa is the delivery man!!

He brings presents from relatives and friends which are labelled as such, and makes( or his elves do...another can of worms there?) the presents mummies and daddies send him the money for, that was how we did it.

Person_one

notanewuser wrote: »

There is nothing wrong with our decision to not follow the crowd. Every single one of DD's classmates might get given an iPad for Xmas aged 5 - that doesn't mean DD will be getting one just so that she's "not left out". Where will it end?!!!

Being 'different' doesn't have any value in and of itself. Its not so terrible to do the same thing as everybody else every now and then, it doesn't mean you're boring.

Person_one

OrkneyStar wrote: »

The main downside I can see with santa is 1. why does santa give more/better to child x/y/z- have I not been good?

I think that children young enough to genuinely believe in Father Christmas don't really have any concept of how much things cost or what adults consider 'better'. By the time they know about money, and jobs, and some people having more than others they at least have a pretty strong inkling that it might actually be mum or dad who eats that mince pie they leave out!

owen_money

Just tell him Santa is a person nobody has seen, it just a made up story and a lie to keep people happy. Remind him that Christmas is about God, a person nobody has seen.................. hang on

*Louise*

I would imagine that the older we get and the more disappointments we experience, the memory of finding out about Santa is rather low on the list

I don't remember being disappointed, I remember thinking 'wow, how did you manage all that' I was happy to keep up the pretence for years for siblings (9 year gap) without any resentment so they could experience the magic I had felt. My son is 14 and doing the same for his siblings. I would think him a little self centred if he didn't play along tbh but he does so happily.

The vast majority of children realise that these 'lies' are made with love and good intentions for their benefit, I don't personally know anyone who has thought differently when the truth was revealed.



OP you should just put the gifts out and don't say anything unless he does, he may well be too excited to comment.