Where are our British Christmas traditions going?

[RabbitsNBears]

I can’t help but feel ever so sad about the wonderful Christmas traditions we grew up with are disappearing. It's like we are raising our young ones in the USA. Who is “Santa”? In my day he was called Father Christmas. What is this elf on the shelf nonsense, as far as I can tell he teaches our grandchildren that misbehaving is amusing, not the old fashioned lessons of behaving as Father Christmas knows if you’ve been good or bad. And don’t even get me started on how my DIL had the grandchildren leaving “Santa” cookies and milk. What’s wrong with a glass of brandy and a mince pie?

Well. Yes, for various reasons, probably social media, we decided to adopt
American stuff. 🤷‍♀️

Yep!

It’s Santa in NE England, always has been.

I always ask my children what to leave out for Santa. They usually suggest mince pies or cookie but they’ve never suggested an alcoholic drink.

I tell my children the naughty and nice lists were made up by adult to try and make children behave. They don’t need to be stressing about some imaginery list and I need them to behave for us and themsleves not a mythical figure.

Always been Santa and I never stepped foot in the US until I was an adult so it’s definitely not just an American term

Father Christmas sounds ridiculous to me

In my Scottish childhood, "father Christmas" was the sort of figure who was in the pages of a Famous 5 book, along with lashings of ginger beer and characters who said things were topping or whizz-o. Go into any class of 5 year olds in Scotland and ask what Father Christmas is bringing and you'll get blank expressions.

I think that telling children that father Christmas knows whether they have been good or bad is best left in the past. For starters, it's not true. But most importantly I wouldn't want children to want to behave because they are being watched, I prefer it if they want to behave intrinsically- otherwise they danger is that whenever tbey think they are not being watched, they will misbehave.

Yep! Every year on MN this thread happens. Santa in Scotland. Always has been.

We're doing OK.

Last weekend in our village we have Father Christmas' Sleigh run, we have an outdoor carol concert next weekend (pray for a dry evening), and a midnight service on Christmas Eve.

We still have stockings with a tangerine in the toe. We don't have a Christmas cake but do have Christmas pud and mince pies - without chocolate or salted caramel 🤑

Enjoy all the things you prefer and let others get on with theirs.

Although I do admit to 'losing' the six psychedelic glass robot tree decorations that my ex bought for ds. Not sure quite what they had to do with Xmas, and they were too ugly for my tree.

Just because they were your traditions does not mean they were everyone else's traditions.

In our house its father Christmas,we make homemade mince pies on Christmas eve for him with a whiskey and carrot for the reindeer.
Father Christmas only brings a stocking and the rest of the gifts my children know come from mummy & Daddy.

So no one calls him Daddy Winter? 🤣

I’m actually converted though - when I have kids, we might leave brandy and a mince pie for Santa.

Though I like to put my presents under the tree as soon as they’re wrapped so the kids might be confused at what the midnight snacks are for 🤣

And as for the booze, it was whisky when my Grandad was alive, but we don’t drink so I’m not buying alcohol purely to tip down the sink, and we don’t have mince pies because if the dog eats one it will cost us a fortune at the vet. So it’s milk and some shortbread and a carrot here!

In our house it was Father Xmas and Santa and that was the 90s.

I dont have brandy or sherry or whisky. Im not buying a bottle for Santa. He can have milk.

I also hate mince pies, christmas pudding and cake. So santa can have a biccie.

Isn't it lovely that traditions can evolve and we don't have to have the same christmas every single year.

We have Santa in Scotland i think we took him to America im sorry you are sad about Father Christmas , Elf in the shelf isn't harming you i do think it is a lot of work and not something my kids had growing up but it really is harmless and a bit of fun you are being a bit miserable, about what other people do at Christmas. I hope 🎅 is good to you

He was father Christmas to me growing up but definitely santa to others. Calling him Santa is not a new thing, we've been calling him Santa Claus since the 19th century.

I'm pretty certain mum and dad leave whatever they fancy having as an evening snack out on Xmas eve. In my day is was a glass of my dad's favourite whisky.

I cant see any British traditions getting lost, is the elf not sent to spy on you so father Christmas knows if you've been good?

I dont know how old you are @RabbitsNBears , but we left milk for FC in the 80s. That's how we knew he was real, my mum didn't drink milk and someone clearly had.

No idea why we didn't think it had been poured down the sink!

Daddy Winter sounds kinda sexy 😂

Oh you mean English^^ traditions? I'm over 60 years old and he has always been called Santa since I was a wee lass! ;)

I’m English, mid 40s and always knew him as Santa Claus!

Daddy Winter is definitely in some sort of Christmas themed porn film!

Here. Well I did try to add popcorn eating santa

Oh and Santa usually gets a nice cold glass of Chablis here, as I’ll be drinking it as soon as the kids are in bed.

I'm 36 and he's always been Santa, but I knew other people referred to him at St Nicholas, Father Christmas etc.
We left a mince pie, glass of milk and carrot for the reindeer (imagine if everyone gave him brandy - he'd be too drunk to do anything for the rest of the night!)
I don't do Elf on the Shelf with my 4 year old and never plan on it (enough on my plate at this time of year as it is!)
I bought a special key for Santa so he can get in the house as we don't have a chimney so that'll be a new tradition for us.
Christmas presents were never left under the tree for me and my brother growing up - they were put on our chairs/place on the sofa in the living room.

@sprigatito - I agree...cultures and traditions evolve, that's part of life and, at the end of the day, everyone does something different. Doesn't mean any traditions/rituals any more superior than the others.

Genius.

Yep, I’m in Scotland and it’s always been Santa, with a dram and a mince pie and a carrot for the reindeer. My DD did the elf for her little brother, it was her contribution once she was too old for Santa.