To think the magic of small children at Christmas is a load of old bollocks

My post is stupid. 🙃

Children only expect what you teach them to expect.
For me, the "magic" came from recieving presents I had asked for but wasn't sure were possible. We didn't even "do" Father Christmas beyond it being an imaginary game everyone played.

I'm aiming for the same with my kids. The "magic" is in my 2yr old shaking with excitement when he opens the OTHER spaceship he'd admired - not just the one he asked for. It's in the anticipation when they watch Dad open the present they chose for him. It's in the joy in their faces when friends and family come to visit.

Yes, adult Christmas has its own fun and joy and laughter, but anyone who's knocking a Christmas with (their own) small children is probably doing so because they've set expectations way too high.

Yabu .Christmas is wonderful with small DC .the looks of wonder.the leaving a glass of milk for santa .a carrot for Rudolph.Trips on Santa Special .a steam train through the countryside to see the big man .panto ahh.Hoping for GC so we can do these again.we have lovely chilled Christmas and our good friend cooks a perfect turkey dinner .very enjoyable

This was our first Christmas with a little one - she doesn't even understand about Father Christmas yet, but my god it was exhausting. I could sleep for a week now. But so special. I'd take this over any Christmas we've had before, just her little face seeing her presents, and her excitement to see grandparents and great grandparents on Christmas morning, it was lovely.

I like all Christmasses to be honest! I have a 2 and 7 year old and am exhausted from being up at 5am and spending a good chunk of yesterday sprinting round after a lively toddler. But it’s so lovely seeing them excited and playing with them (and they look so cute in their Christmas outfits!)

Pre-kid Christmas was less exciting but I got to read my book with a glass of wine and spend more time playing board games with my family and chatting to everyone. So it’s a win either way imo, and I’m sure when I get there teen/adult kid Christmas will be lovely in its own way too!

Also I laid traps and worked out that Father Christmas and the Tooth Fairy didn't exist on the same day and didn't bat an eyelid.

Errrrm, I will take my 2yo yelling THANK YOU FATHER CHRISTMAS up the chimney over the adult Christmases I've had every day of the week thank you.

Mixed bag for me. On the whole I don’t miss the chaos of Christmas when they were little. Felt as if I could never live in the moment watching them open their presents. I was always there with a pen and paper writing down who had bought what, worrying about thank yous. That said I do miss some of the magic and having a Grandparent around, they only had one around but she died 10 years ago. Highlights of a teen/adult Christmas have been my older DS doing nearly all of the Christmas dinner and being able to go to the pub on Christmas Eve

I agree with this. My family are horrified that we've never done Santa. They think the kids must have missed out, Christmas isn't magical etc - but they really really don't miss out! They still love it and if anything they're so grateful to us for all that we do for them ❤️ It's consumerism gone mad if people think Christmas only needs Santa to be magical ✨

MN is the only place ive ever heard about anyone being deeply affected by finding out their parents lied to them about Santa.

Little kid Xmas here. I loved how excited they were about their gifts and how much they enjoyed being with us. I loved watching my DP and DFIL play with them. But the over excitement definitely requires managing! I was in bed by 9pm!

Congratulations on being so capable! Here’s your medal 🥇

I voted YANBU

Christmas day yesterday was just an extension of every other shit day with little kids.

I worked until xmas eve, then got the worse cold and cough for years, all I wanted to do was rest. But no. Just dealt with meltdowns and kids tv all day. Bring on teenage/adult Christmas

This is just stupid. I never believed in Santa and neither do my kids. Christmas still had that lovely special ‘magical’ feel when I was a kid, and my kids still love it too. Kids happily exist in a hinter world of make believe of things they know don’t really exist. Adults don’t need to fake it all, or to tell kids it’s literally true, for the ‘magic’. Children’s minds live in a fantasy creative ‘magical’ world anyway.

i really think this adult obsession with making kids believe in Santa is more about the parents than the kids.

Also, some kids are genuinely really upset to find their parents have lied to them for years. If you tell your kids Santa is literally real, and your kids honestly believe it, then finding out your parents have constructed and maintained a lie, can be devastating for some kids.

Why risk it for ‘magic’ that exists anyway without the lie?

😂

Yep. Having a 2 and 5 year old who are not really up for a lie in, a long walk and maybe a swim, followed by a trip to the pub on Xmas day (all things DH and I did pre kids and all things on the list you said were possible with small kids) is my definition of incapable adult syndrome. Absolutely on a par with not managing 2 emails worth of admin.

Sigh. I’ve literally robbed them of absolutely nothing at all. Dramatic nonsense.
I was discussing this topic with my dd this evening. she said she feels sad for kids who had “the magic” and therefore have such a narrow understanding of of Christmas traditions that they rigidly stick to FC and his squeezing down the chimney (creepy!) when she knows of various others from other countries….. St Nicholas, Santa Klaus, Krampus….. and others. And that they have to “believe the magic” and the learn it’s all a lie. She’s now 21 and would do exactly the same with her kids (if she has them) as I have with mine.

I could have 1000 christmas days with my children at this age or younger (11,8) and it wouldn’t be enough. I am utterly exhausted and yet I’ve never felt richer.

What a load of nonsense! I have wonderful memories of the excitement of Santa coming as a child. I grew up in a violent home but the magic of Christmas and Santa are memories I look back on fondly. Seeing the presents and believing that magic had just happened, it was just amazing. I really feel for your kids, you’ve robbed them of that.

Grandchildren is where it's really at! All the fun of young children and none of the responsibility.

Alcohol, food and games

I loved it when the children were little even though it was a lot of work for me. I’m loving having young adult children at Christmas too. It’s a lot more chill, have a laugh and I don’t have to get all the gifts. I get lots back too now.

Na, I've done young adult child free and Christmas with kids and I much prefer kid Christmas, I think I feed off their excitement!

Ha. Love that!

Maybe some of us are more capable, because we managed most of it and gave our children a lovely magical Xmas when they were young. I suppose if you’re someone who struggles with life, the sort who talks about ‘all the life admin’ they have to do because you got 2 emails from school and need to buy the kids a costume for their nativity, like so many on here, then you’ll struggle to enjoy life. Lots of us are more capable than that.

To be honest I think I don't really enjoy what a lot of people consider the "adult" parts of Christmas.
I don't like Christmas Dinner, I don't like alcohol.
I like getting stocking fillers and playing with toys 😂😂😂