When they stop believing

[Afishcalledwonderful]

Morning all. I just wondered how parents dealt with their little ones questioning the existence of Father Christmas? My 6 year old still very much believes but knowing him, he will ask me a very direct question one day and want me to tell the truth! I can vaguely remember my older cousin telling me he wasn't real and me wondering why on earth my parents still believed! 😆

When my daughter (8?) was beginning to question it, I told her that whether or not she believed in Father Christmas, if she hung out a stocking on Christmas Eve, it would be filled.

She looked at me, grinned and said ”thought so” and still hangs her stocking out. She's 24.

My then 9 yr old begged me to tell her the truth. I did and she cried. She said she was upset I'd lied to her for years .
She is now 11 and spends most of November planning Christmas festivities for her younger sister including how to keep the 'lie' going . But both girls are very happy and I don't have to worry about moving the sodding elf!

Ds1 was still confused at 16 😀

I have never told my two that he doesn't exist and they are teenagers they managed to work it out for themselves and no one ever got upset over "lies".

I just used to say well it's up to you if you don't want to put a stocking out this year then. Funnily enough they both still hang their stockings out today

11 my DS told me he knew....I was distraught!!!! He's my only one

My friend is a TA for year 2, she says most DCs have worked it out by then, but knowing it’s not true doesn’t alter the magic of Christmas for them at all. The DC keep the illusion that they still believe to make their parents happy. It’s quite sweet.

My 9 year old asked me the other week I said do you want to know the truth because I can't take it back. He said yes and he was fine with it. Kids at school were saying he isn't real. I told him to go along with it for his younger siblings and not to go out of his way to tell others he wasn't real.

My 12 year old was 9 I think when he outright asked me, but it was a bit tongue in cheek. He said he had known for 2 years but didn't want to say anything in case he didn't get presents anymore. I think it's more a case of kids gradually stopping believing as they grow up rather than the sudden realisation that it's not real.

I am so relieved to read this thread. I told 13 year old DS that I was Santa a few days ago.
I told him at 11 and again at 12 and he did not believe me. I assumed he knew on some level and let it go.
It came to a head when he refused to tell me what he wanted this year as it was between him and Santa !
He was very upset, it was quite heartbreaking and I felt bad about it. He told me I had ruined Christmas. I am still baffled at how he hung on to Santa for so long when he is quite the teenager in other ways.
On the bright side, he will now get some things in his list now that it is not between him and Santa !