Help...is Father Christmas at fetes/shopping centres the real one??

[mummyineedyounow]

I'm struggling a bit here...DD aged 5 & DS aged 3 are asking lots of questions about Father Christmas. I'm not sure if they're his helpers or the real thing...please can you help!!

Sometimes it is and sometimes it's one of Santa's "checkers". You never can tell.

Tough one, I'd prob go with they are his helpers incase they notice the differences in apearance at different stores.
Santa's busy making all the toys for the good boys and girls, although they are all on the shelves in the shops..... and are signed 'love from aunt Jane

helpers here.

yes, santa is very busy at the moment, preparing and making all the toys, he has to oversee the elves are doing their jobs correctly and checking his list, once and twice

sometimes he goes to the grotto to meet children and sometimes its his helpers - you never know if its the real father xmas or not you are meeting

They are helpers because the real FC is jolly busy sorting out all the presents and working out who's been good or bad.

My dad may not be able to do FC this year for the first time in four decades. I was hoping he could keep going for another couple of years so when ds is old enough to be in on the secret he can go and see Grandad in action.

No....we tell ds1 that as father christmas is so busy getting all the toys ready, he sends out lots of helpers to help him meet all the children and then take back their christmas wishes. I do also say that occasionally he gets the time to do some himself but you'll never know if its the real one or not and that seems to add to the excitement. Its what my mum used to tell us and I genuinely believed it and my brother and I used to argue for ages as to whether it was the real one or a helper!!

Yes helpers here too

Well he can't be everywhere can he? That only works on christmas eve

dd2 sussed this one out this week (she's 5). She realised that FC must recruit lots of grandads to help him because he's so busy...and that it must be a great honour to be picked!

There is only one real one and no one has ever seen him and no one ever will. He comes on Christmas eve only if you're fast asleep.
The rest are employees of the shopping centres or shops.
The whole helper thing is just as easily 'rumbled' by a smart child. Most have the most pathetically fake costumes its an insult to the real FC!

Oi, are you calling less-suspicious children stupid?

I was worried ds would spot FC at the school fete was one of the dads but fortunately the beard was so bushy you could barely see ANY face.

DS1 (6.10) saw Father Christmas the other day and concluded that it can't have been the real one because
a) he didn't know his name and Father Christmas knows all the children's names and
b) the real one doens't let children see him as he only comes when they're asleep

seems fair enough to me