Different traditions re Santa

[daisyflowergirl123]

Hi all

Needing some insight into people's Christmas traditions please!

For me as a child, Santa would bring a sack which had a selection of presents (small things like pjs/books/chocolates) and these would be specifically from and delivered by Santa. My parents would then have main presents under the tree from them.

DH has discussed that as a child, the parents that Santa delivered were actually from his parents, so no presents under the tree but his tradition was that the presents in the Santa sack/stocking delivered by Santa were from the parents.

Now my DD is at the age of starting to understand Christmas's were having discussions over which tradition to follow!

So what is/was the tradition in your household?

Small stocking from Father Christmas and all other presents from whoever bought them. Dgs doesn't question why Father Christmas delivers him a stocking to his house that he opens first thing and he delivers another stocking here for him to open after dinner because my dc used to have their stockings hung on the back of the dining chairs to encourage them to stay at the table until dinner was finished and they have never wanted to change that.

My parents did everything delivered by santa, not sure what DP's parents did but it's kind of a moot point because I'd already established with DS that Santa brought a sack of presents (main that's asked for in Santa letter then want, need, wear, read) and everything under the tree was from me/friends/family before DP came on the scene

We do stocking of small bits and pieces and usually one main big present from Santa, to be opened when they get up. The main present most often something they have asked Santa for in letters or when visiting him, but sometimes a surprise if they only asked for something small / didn't know what they wanted.

We will also do one or two presents labelled from us, often more practical things like clothes, books or this year we are doing theatre tickets. We usually do a small fun thing from the kids to each other too. These will be under the tree with presents from anyone else and those up the adults and we open them in turn with whoever we are spending Christmas day with, usually over coffee / bucks fizz / mince pies or biscuits late Christmas morning. If we are seeing grandparents / uncles and aunts near Christmas but not Christmas day, we most often save exchanging presents with them until we see them unless they prefer to give beforehand for kids to open on the day.

Santa only brings the stocking and main present, everything else from the real people. They usually write a longer list of present ideas and choose one to ask Santa for in a letter and know others may be used as suggestions for family. Santa also puts chocolates on the Christmas tree but that's very specific to my family I think, from when I was growing up! Kind of wish I hadn't started that one now!

I sometimes think we should have done only stocking from Santa, as it avoids issues of differences in spend with other families etc, but then I never get how the whole letter to Santa / visiting Santa thing works then.

For our kids - presents from Santa unwrapped in a pillowcase, big present wrapped from us under the tree; presents from rest of family wrapped under the tree (those as GPs and ILs age these are actually bought and wrapped by me).
I think it’s helpful to decouple the how good - size of present thing. At a gathering of friends and their children about a 10 years I still remember my DS being crestfallen at comment made by an adult to one of the other kids. Other child had got an iPad of Santa and was told “Santa must have seen you were so good this year!” My DS was a really good kid at that age but an iPad was way off the scale of what we were buying.

My stocking was always from Father Christmas along with one present under the tree. Everything else was from the person who bought it. We've gone the same route with 5 yr old DD.

Stocking with little bits and bobs, chocs/sweets and something from their Christmas list/any letter to the big man

Everything else under tree from family

Since the kids write to Santa saying what they want for Xmas, it never made sense to me for Santa to then ignore their letter and bring them a small stocking full of sweets and little treats instead. So in our house Santa always brought most of the presents, especially anything they had written on their letter to him. They have large hessian Santa sacks instead of stockings.

Then usually they would have a couple of extra things under the tree from mum and dad (often shared presents like a board game). Then there would be presents from other people such as grandparents which would be labelled as such and opened later in the day. Sometimes if the grandparents were going to buy one of the things requested in the Santa letter we'd say Santa had a word with Grandma and asked her to get that present.

Pretty much the same as me growing up (I remember having a pillowcase full of presents from Santa.

The only thing I'd change about our tradition is the location of stockings. We always did it on their bedroom door handle, same as my parents did, but it is very stressful trying to manhandle a sack of presents upstairs quietly! On reflection we should have done it that all stockings were 'hung' downstairs!!

This is absolutely wonderful I love it!!

Stocking/sock is filled with very small items such as chocolates, Xmas socks, small games, novelty items, deodorant, shower gel, a book. That type of thing. Usually costing about £30 to £40 ish. The empty stocking is left on the end of the bed on Xmas eve. By Xmas morning it is filled and kids open these together at stupid o’clock in the morning when they wake up. All other presents are wrapped and under the tree with labels on from whoever bought them, and are nothing to do with Father Christmas. In our family we all open our presents together mid morning while eating mince pies etc, once guests have arrived. Or if we are going to another family members house we take the presents with us.

Santa brought everything and filled the empty sacks we left at the foot of our beds when we went to sleep. We kept the Santa bringing the presents bit and shifted the sacks down to the fireplace (XH's tradition) because this meant we didn't have to worry about waking the kids! Family gifts were under the tree.

Same as you. I remember my SiL used to tell her children ALL presents came from Santa. So her kids never knew we’d bought them anything or thanked us 🥴

We do stocking and one asked for present from Santa, not wrapped, usually something that needs building so Santa can pre build that we make sure is on the list but DC are 4 and 1 so easy to engineer currently
then everything else from DH and I or family, all wrapped, although both DC, DH and myself all have different paper so we don’t have to put gift tags on

Yeah, we did an extra wrapped FC present for quite a few years - so they’d wake up to a stocking and a wrapped gift at the bottom of their beds. Phased that out as they got older and 1. there were fewer “main” present ideas and 2. they knew full well they were from us anyway. But they still delight in the stocking and we still sneak in while they’re asleep and we all maintain the game beautifully. They are 13/15 and still like leaving out carrots for the reindeer and mince pie / sherry for FC!

everything bought and paid for by us- delivered by santa

Only small, unwrapped presents from Father Christmas.
Allowed a few presents before lunch but the majority would be handed out afterwards.
Mum would compile a list so we could write thank you letters.

Make your own.. Some people like to "get the credit".

Do you wanf credit?

We do fc bringing all gifts except those from other people and one or two from us.

PS until mn I've never heard of paying for gifts and getting credit.

There has never been ' presents under tree'
Christmas morning heaps of presents at end of bed, some on floor. And in sitting room more presents piled up on sofa.!!!!!!
Later on at family party MORE GIFTS.!!!!!
I was blessed.

It's not credit, it's teaching children manners and appreciation. My sister said everything was from Santa and used to shush people if they asked the children if they liked the gift they'd bought them.
In our house FC and I are a kind of team. I buy presents as do other people but FC brings a gift each and leaves those under the tree. Gifts from everyone else are kind of magicked into stockings and sacks and F.C does all the magic stuff. I suspect DDs 16 and 14 don't believe but ds, my mum and me all believe. FC presents are wrapped differently and under the tree and did used to bring small things that didn't cost much then it's become things I can't really afford. Not sure how that's happened.
One year when I was 12 I said I'd like the presents to be under the tree rather than in my pillowcase. Normally I don't want to see anything, even if it's wrapped, behind Christmas morning. I hated it.
As a child I don't remember having anything from Father Christmas, just family.

Santa brings stocking presents, odds and ends, unwrapped, in a stocking, parents bring the main present, wrapped, under the tree. Otherwise, how is it fair that Santa brings big gifts for some kids and not others?

In my house Father Christmas brought the stocking. Parents gave the presents.

In my husbands house there wasn’t a stocking. Father Christmas brought all the presents.

As a child, I was told people bought the gifts and they sent them to Santa to deliver. My 6 yr old asks Santa for something fairly small and it comes in a sack from Santa, last year it was orange matchmakers this year it’s a board game and everything else is from me/family/friends.

Everything from Santa! Until they started asking for electronic items such as an iPad my daughter believed until 9 so it was inevitable something like that would be asked for - expensive items were from M&D

Santa fills the children’s stockings, which are hung up on Christmas Eve, these magically appear at the foot of the children’s beds in the morning. Then Santa also provides one present, which the children asked Santa for (either in a Santa letter or in a meet and greet with Santa before Xmas). This present is something mid-range, affordable.

I hate the idea of poor children wondering why Santa brings their rich friend loads of expensive presents when they get one small present.

The little presents in the stocking and the main Santa present are all wrapped in the same paper, usually traditional red wrapping paper.

All other presents, usually including a biggish present (something they’ll need that year) are wrapped in different paper and labelled and it’s made clear they are from friends and family.

We only do small birthday presents so go all out at Christmas but ensure the children know we give Santa the money to make or buy the presents so it’s financially feasible and they don’t go bragging in school etc to children whose parents can’t afford such items.