Talk to me about Father Christmas please

[DitaVonCheese]

I'm editor of our local NCT newsletter and am putting together the winter/Christmas issue. As usual, my appeal to local mums for stuff for articles has come to naught so I'm hitting MN and claiming you're local NCTers instead

I'm doing an article about Father Christmas - I have to admit I'm in the it's-weird-to-lie-to-your-kids camp but we do currently have FC and I know my outlook isn't particularly festive so I guess I'm asking you to tell me about how you do FC in your house: do you go the whole hog to fool your kids keep the magic alive with glittery oatmeal and phone calls from the big man or is it all a bit more half-hearted than that? Do you fall out with your in-laws because you want all presents to be marked from Santa or does he just leave a tangerine and a bag of chocolate coins? Please give me some Christmassy stuff!

TIA :)

Show of hands I'm really interested in the stories you tell of Yule and Pagans and Christianity and St Nick and Baboushka etc.

Are there books you read you could recommend? I would love to do the same with my children

FC here brings one present, the one specifically asked for. So, for example, DD (3) has asked for a Peppa Pig playhouse. He'll bring that and some stocking fillers. Everything else comes from the people who bought them, i.e. us and relatives.

Last year for the first time we did carrots and mince pies and also a Christmas eve delivery of pyjamas etc. Will do the same this year and for as long as she believes and/or wants it to continue. I think it's a nice part of Christmas and, tbh, doesn't really matter if the child actually believes or not. It's all part of our (our as in mine) Christmas traditions.

trills I disagree strongly with your comment about fc bringing all the presents. We have had many christmases where money has been tight. The dcs have always been aware of this, as we have told them fc can't bring much this year as we haven't got much money to send him.

It also explains why some of their friends don't get many presents. We used to buy presents for their friends who were asylum seekers. They would get one present from their mum and dad which cost roughly 15 pounds each. My dcs understood that fc couldn't bring lots of presents for them because their mum and dad couldn't afford it.

Christmas is such a popular celebration because their are no right or wrong ways to celebrate it. The fact is, we all have different traditions but they all revolve around spending a special time with our children and families and in many cases other people who might not be so lucky. The question should not be how we celebrate but why.

My DC are (almost) 8 and 5 and we've gone along with the whole story. They get so excited about FC, I think it does add an extra layer of specialness to the whole thing.

In our house FC fills a pillow case sized sack. Of this, the girls ask him for 3 items specifically - usually one big present and a couple of smaller things. This is put in a letter which they post (but I swap over before it goes into the post box). Then their letter is placed back in the bottom of the sack. The rest of the sack is made up of mostly practical things that they need - vests, pants etc, treats that they are not normally allowed - bubble gum, coco pops etc and just useful things - new books, things for their room, things that need replacing (such as art supplies) etc

Then they get 5 main presents from us.

It works for us.

In our house FC fills the stockings. The presents under the tree are from relatives and thank you cards have to be made! My DC are 9,7 and 2 and the older two still believe in FC (the youngest is still a bit oblivious to Christmas!) DC1 is aware that not everyone believes in Santa, but he is also aware that people have many different belief systems (eg not everyone believes in God but that doesn't mean that it's wrong for those who do believe) He has asked me if he does exist and I have answered honestly that I have never seen him but that doesn't mean he doesn't exist.... and I find it hard to explain how his stocking ends up full of chocolate, laser guns and other items that no sane parent buys :o if it's not Santa that fills them! I know that this may well be the last year he believes in him as a jolly man who comes down the chimney, but hope that he will continue to view him as the spirit of Chrstmas who inspires parents to shopping sprees of madness!

yes our elf is an elf on the shelf but we too find the original idea too sinister and blackmaily, so have just changed it to something more friendly and loving!!

Our kids get stockings from Father Christmas (although I know in Scotland I should be calling him Santa). Presents around the tree are from family. Typical stocking fillers are small good quality traditional toys , eg a set of wooden soldiers, a kaleidoscope, etc. and books. They always get a satsuma in the foot of the stocking and some chocolate coins. They get a chocolate Father Christmas too.

We have already run into issues due to lack of chimney, but thankfully a clued up Santa in the garden centre fixed that one with an explanation of the "magic key".

Christmas Eve routine is to leave mince pie and small glass of sherry plus an apple for Rudolph (who has, apparently, requested that carrots are not left as they make his nose turn orange - thanks to the same Santa for that one!). Stockings are hung up on the outside of the doors when they go to bed. They may open their stocking when they get up, but presents from family around the tree wait until mid morning.

I would hate for my kids to rip open a pillow case full of presents on Christmas morning by themselves, not knowing who they were from.

Showofhands - I too would be really interested in hearing more about your stories. I remember Babushka from school and I'd love to tell my kids other traditional tales.

Oh, and I totally agree that FC is only one small part of Christmas. For me the first essential is the advent calendar, a proper one with pictures, never ever a chocolate one.

We make the pudding a week or two before Christmas and everyone gets to stir it. We try to make mince pies too although that doesn't always happen. Going to get the tree is a family occasion. We put the lights on it and then decorate it as close to Christmas as we can get away with (used to be Christmas Eve before children). No presents around the tree until last thing on Christmas Eve so they're a surprise on Christmas morning.

oh we go the whole hog, christmas movies, xmas stories, visits to xmas events at guillivers world, altons towers etc, xmas music in the car!!

We all go and get the tree on first saturday of december and its a big deal - all decorate together- tbh i love christmas so as much for me as the kids!

I tell them santa brings the presents to the house but the family/friends presents are off those individuals - explains all the bags of stuff round the house- for family members!

On xmas eve we leave a carrot, mince pie and milk on the fireplace. Kids wear new pjs and stay up slightly later watching xmas movie.

We sprinkle red glitter at the bottom of the fire hearth and eat half the pie and drink some milk! DH then goes outside and rings a tamborine during the night (just in case!!) - totally mad i know but my parents did this to me and i loved it!

My mother told me the "truth" when I was in 3rd class (so about 9) becuase she was afraid I was getting teased at school (there had been a question in about Septembre about where was Lapland on the map in geography, and I had answered "up near the north pole where Santa keeps his reindeers" to much hilarity). But I kept it a secret from my bro's and sis's until the youngest was much older (I think we first discussed it when he was 21!). That said, ANYONE sleeping under my parent's roof on Christmas Eve still has to leave out their socks for fruit, sweets and a book from the elder Mr Claus still in residence (and any parents in the house look after their own children's stockings themselves, the elder Mr Claus's grandkids).

In our own house, DD has a birthday during the Christmas season so it's major. And I am a Christmas nut too. So while we don't exactly lie, we do help her believe in the magic of Christmas. And I look on it as magic too - even if I am the one filling the stockings. She understands that different people believe in different things (multi-denom school and lots of different beliefs in friends). And everyone can celebrate with their friends (like recent Diwali celebrations) even if that is not their belief.

But specific traditions are:
Ater the youngest in the house lights the Christmas candle, DD (only child) puts out her stocking, carrot for Rudolph, milk and homemade cookies for SC, and has a bath and new PJs. (HM cookies are time dependent - I always have the oven on that evening anyway and some years we go from scratch to make the dough and fill time, other years I slice off a few from a frozen log of dough always in the freezer at that time of year for last minute treats!). And SC isn't allowed a beer cos then he wouldn;t be able to keep driving the sleigh!

While we read all sorts of Christmassy stories (Santa, Bible, general magic of the season....) throughout December at bedtime, on Christmas Eve itself we always have the first reading of "Twas the night before Christmas" of the year (I keep that particular book in with the Christmas decorations).

The stocking always has "something you want, something you need, something to eat and something to read". A large present, a few fun little things, something useful like socks or vests, a book (or 2) and both fruit and sweets (I try to get chocolate coins but don't always get around to that).

SC never wraps his presents, and they are always downstairs. Mom and Dad also have a present for DD under the tree, just as they have something for each other and she has something for them too (all opened later in the day).

We had an Advent Calendar last year, that my mum made, so I have to think about what goes into that this year. But we also do things together like presents for local charities to help SC make sure as many kids as possible get nice things for Christmas.