Does Santa get all the glory in your house?

[Disneylover99]

Santa brings underwear and toothbrushes.

We just haven't done the whole Santa thing very much.

Santa is a practical guy in our house too.

 

[Aliceacc]

One part of it we never did was the whole "Be good, Santa's watching" thing.

You're supposed to be good because you're supposed to be good, not because it will yield you more loot on Christmas morning.

So Christmas gifts were never tied into behavior. My kids were no better or worse behaved than anyone else's, but it had nothing to do with Santa keeping track of their behavior. We did the Elf on the Shelf for a few years, but Sparky just came and went; there was no tie in to running to Santa to report every time the kids bickered.

 

[CarolAnn856]

One part of it we never did was the whole "Be good, Santa's watching" thing.

You're supposed to be good because you're supposed to be good, not because it will yield you more loot on Christmas morning.

So Christmas gifts were never tied into behavior. My kids were no better or worse behaved than anyone else's, but it had nothing to do with Santa keeping track of their behavior. We did the Elf on the Shelf for a few years, but Sparky just came and went; there was no tie in to running to Santa to report every time the kids bickered.

Agreed! I hate hearing parents hold Santa over their kids' heads. Same the the Elf on the Shelf. He wasn't a spy in our house. We had 2 (a boy and a girl, just like our kids) who were here to learn what kids like to play with so they could be good toymakers when they grew up. So, they would set up monopoly games and zip lines and all kinds of crazy stuff.

 

[DawnM]

Agreed! I hate hearing parents hold Santa over their kids' heads. Same the the Elf on the Shelf. He wasn't a spy in our house. We had 2 (a boy and a girl, just like our kids) who were here to learn what kids like to play with so they could be good toymakers when they grew up. So, they would set up monopoly games and zip lines and all kinds of crazy stuff.

That Elf is creepy.

 

[NMAmy]

When I was an adult and had a child of my own, my mom clued me into why Santa had always brought one big gift and filled the stockings and it had nothing to do with who got credit. If money gets tight, it's easier explaining that Mom and Dad have to cut back then having to explain why Santa was super generous one year but not as much the next. I carried on the same tradition with DD and it worked out very well for me when I became a single mother and there weren't quite as many gifts around the tree as previous years. Plus it helped keep expectations in line. DD was allowed to ask Santa for one super special gift and she would agonize over it for a month or so. I think she had as much fun making the decision as she did with the actual gift.

My grandson is 1 year old this Christmas so we'll see how DD handles it.

 

[Magpie]

One part of it we never did was the whole "Be good, Santa's watching" thing.

You're supposed to be good because you're supposed to be good, not because it will yield you more loot on Christmas morning.

So Christmas gifts were never tied into behavior. My kids were no better or worse behaved than anyone else's, but it had nothing to do with Santa keeping track of their behavior. We did the Elf on the Shelf for a few years, but Sparky just came and went; there was no tie in to running to Santa to report every time the kids bickered.

It would have been a long series of sad Christmases in our home if presents had been tied to behaviour. Our son was hypoglycemic, and we used to joke about his "Annual Holiday Meltdown" (both before and after his diagnosis). Every Christmas eve for years was celebrated to the sound of a small boy howling.

 

[bethbuchall]

One part of it we never did was the whole "Be good, Santa's watching" thing.

You're supposed to be good because you're supposed to be good, not because it will yield you more loot on Christmas morning.

So Christmas gifts were never tied into behavior. My kids were no better or worse behaved than anyone else's, but it had nothing to do with Santa keeping track of their behavior. We did the Elf on the Shelf for a few years, but Sparky just came and went; there was no tie in to running to Santa to report every time the kids bickered.

I agree! We never told them that Santa was watching or that they needed to be good to get gifts. I cringe a little when I hear the whole "Santa is watching" threats. I'm not sure what happens the rest of the years. My kids grew up before the elves started visiting (thank goodness!).

 

[ronandannette]

I think it's pretty obvious that this discussion is about who the giver is listed as on gift tags, not the "reason we celebrate Christmas." Christmas has pagan roots, and many people who aren't religious celebrate the holiday. While Jesus may be YOUR whole reason, that isn't the case for everyone.

So, given that this was not a religious discussion, since that isn't allowed on the Dis anyway, I don't understand your point in posting the above. Unless, of course, you write Jesus on the gift cards?

And I don't understand what you found so offensive that you had to single this post out for criticism. Simply typing the word "Jesus" doesn't turn a post into a religious rant, nor was that poster scolding anybody for how they do things differently than her. Your hostility is very odd...

It would have been a long series of sad Christmases in our home if presents had been tied to behaviour. Our son was hypoglycemic, and we used to joke about his "Annual Holiday Meltdown" (both before and after his diagnosis). Every Christmas eve for years was celebrated to the sound of a small boy howling.

Yeah, gifts are gifts, not "wages" earned through acceptable conduct. And with lots of people having "receiving gifts" as their love-language, withholding them is pretty cruel.

 

[Hikergirl]

When I was an adult and had a child of my own, my mom clued me into why Santa had always brought one big gift and filled the stockings and it had nothing to do with who got credit. If money gets tight, it's easier explaining that Mom and Dad have to cut back then having to explain why Santa was super generous one year but not as much the next. I carried on the same tradition with DD and it worked out very well for me when I became a single mother and there weren't quite as many gifts around the tree as previous years. Plus it helped keep expectations in line. DD was allowed to ask Santa for one super special gift and she would agonize over it for a month or so. I think she had as much fun making the decision as she did with the actual gift.

My grandson is 1 year old this Christmas so we'll see how DD handles it.

That makes alot of sense. Not that I think other people's reasons don't make sense LOL. If we had handled it differently I probably would have done this approach too.

 

[CarolAnn856]

And I don't understand what you found so offensive that you had to single this post out for criticism. Simply typing the word "Jesus" doesn't turn a post into a religious rant, nor was that poster scolding anybody for how they do things differently than her. Your hostility is very odd...

To be honest, I felt her post was preachy, whereas what you posted before hers was more explanatory and more centered on your personal practices. You are right that simply typing the word "Jesus" or "Buddha" or "Allah" doesn't inherently make a post religious. Implying that one's personal belief is the correct one does. Granted, it is difficult to read tone online, so I certainly allow for the possibility that her intent was different than her delivery and that I misread her intent. As for hostility, no, disagreement does not equal hostility. However, if you took offense to my offering a different perspective, I can also allow for the possibility that perhaps you read something in my post that was not intended and I apologize that my intent wasn't clear.

 

[Poohlove]

At my house Santa got all of the glory and I was ok with that because I figured why ruin their good time so that I can say "look what I did", they would only believe for so long and I wanted them to enjoy every minute of it. Santa brought them toys and filled their stockings complete with a stuffed animal at the top peeking out (still do this now) and Mom brought clothes and a small toy or two.

 

[NHdisneylover]

That makes alot of sense. Not that I think other people's reasons don't make sense LOL. If we had handled it differently I probably would have done this approach too.

that was largely why we did it too. But we were among the "list is just suggestion" camp and thing sare unwrapped and set up camp as well----so in those couple of years when money was REALLY tight, a nicely set up little tikes climber in great shape from a thrift shop or somethign similar did not stand out as "less" to younger kids as far as Santa was concerned, and we could scrape that together.

 

[Turn the Page]

One part of it we never did was the whole "Be good, Santa's watching" thing.

You're supposed to be good because you're supposed to be good, not because it will yield you more loot on Christmas morning.

So Christmas gifts were never tied into behavior. My kids were no better or worse behaved than anyone else's, but it had nothing to do with Santa keeping track of their behavior. We did the Elf on the Shelf for a few years, but Sparky just came and went; there was no tie in to running to Santa to report every time the kids bickered.

We do the "Santa's watching" thing but the kids know we are full of it. They really are good kids and they know it.

This story about that comes from my niece. She is 4 and a major handful. She has special needs but my DB and SIL just won't admit it. Sadly, they aren't mild either so they are rather obvious. We have all tried telling them but they just won't listen. They had her evaluated by the ISD a few years ago and the ISD said she had sensory processing issues and told them to give her heavy things to lift but didn't offer any therapy services or anything. I talked to my SIL about it a few weeks ago and she admitted that the ISD said DN had sensory issues but that she has grown out of them since then. OK then.

Anyway, I digress. DN came home from daycare a few weeks ago just sobbing. My mom asked her what was wrong and DN said the daycare provider god upset because DN wasn't listening and she said she was going to call Santa and tell him DN was being naughty. DN, being 4, believed her and was super upset but my mom told her the provider couldn't do that because Santa doesn't have a phone, you have to write Santa a letter and the provider didn't do that. That seemed to calm DN down. I laugh at the story but I feel bad for her too. She was really upset and she isn't being bad on purpose, she really can't control herself well.

 

[blana]

When I was an adult and had a child of my own, my mom clued me into why Santa had always brought one big gift and filled the stockings and it had nothing to do with who got credit. If money gets tight, it's easier explaining that Mom and Dad have to cut back then having to explain why Santa was super generous one year but not as much the next. I carried on the same tradition with DD and it worked out very well for me when I became a single mother and there weren't quite as many gifts around the tree as previous years. Plus it helped keep expectations in line. DD was allowed to ask Santa for one super special gift and she would agonize over it for a month or so. I think she had as much fun making the decision as she did with the actual gift.

My grandson is 1 year old this Christmas so we'll see how DD handles it.

Not quite our reason for only doing one Santa gift, but similar. Not only did I always wonder about my parents not giving us gifts, I also wondered why some kids got HUGE Santa outpourings and others got almost nothing. Explaining that Santa only brings one gift made that more logical to me. And made it easier to explain to my kids why we adopt a family at church for an angel tree.

 

[ronandannette]

To be honest, I felt her post was preachy, whereas what you posted before hers was more explanatory and more centered on your personal practices. You are right that simply typing the word "Jesus" or "Buddha" or "Allah" doesn't inherently make a post religious. Implying that one's personal belief is the correct one does. Granted, it is difficult to read tone online, so I certainly allow for the possibility that her intent was different than her delivery and that I misread her intent. As for hostility, no, disagreement does not equal hostility. However, if you took offense to my offering a different perspective, I can also allow for the possibility that perhaps you read something in my post that was not intended and I apologize that my intent wasn't clear.

Fair enough - thanks, no apology required. Oh, and Merry Christmas

 

[Vicki926]

Santa filled their stockings(unwrapped stuff), and brought the one special gift they wanted most. Wrapped in paper that has Santa on it.
Everything else is from mom and dad.

 

[mernin]

Santa brings 1 gift (wrapped in santa paper) that is not "the big one" and fills the stockings. The other day my kids were talking about "all the presents santa brings" and I corrected them that mom & dad give the majority of them, not santa. We take the credit for presents at our house

 

[KristiMc]

Santa fills the stockings and brings three wrapped (different paper) gifts. All of the rest is put under the tree as it is wrapped from mom and dad.

 

[PollyannaMom]

Santa fills the stocking (we actually have decorated pillowcases because there's board games every year!)...

Love it!

 

[jazzyscoob]

Santa used to bring all the gifts. Now that they are a little older I do all the big gifts from Santa and then some from us. Not because I wanted credit (friends of mine do that and it's so strange to me) but because they started to wonder why I bought gifts for everyone but them.
I also don't let them tell their friends what gifts came from Santa and what came from us. I don't want their friends wondering why Santa brought mine 10 gifts but only brought 1 to their house.