I have a most cherished Christmas memory that is still with me. When I was probably 11ish, some age around there, I woke up in the middle of the night Christmas Eve. Suddenly the door knob twists to my room and my eyes shut so fast. I remember pretending to sleep and thinking, "Wow! Santa is right here. Santa is feet away from me." Even after learning the truth at 14, I still treasure the magic of Santa. I was not devastated, hurt, betrayed or felt lied to. I am thankful for the incredibility of hope it gave me.

In my house,

"If you don't believe, you don't receive."

No Christmas & no easter in this family.

Our celebrations are Eid ☺

We tell my 3 year old santa is make believe.

We still pretend and love "Santa" stuff. We make cookies and leave them out and go see Santa at the mall.

I don't feel comfortable lying to my son. Even if its something silly like Santa. Telling him a man sneaks in the house at night is kinda scary. If Santa is real then monster's can be real too.

I grew up knowing Santa wasn't real. I still loved Christmas and still do.

I don't think it ruins their childhood or anything but I also don't think it will devastate them when they figure out its not real. I just remember being old enough that I figured it out on my own and just went on with my life. I have a brother that is 12 years younger than me so we did the Santa thing for a long time and I loved it. Watching him be so excited and now my dd is the same way. I just think it's all fun and if your child is devastated and scarred for life after finding out it wasn't real, then maybe you took it a little too seriously! I will say, I will be PISSED if someone who doesn't do those things has a child that ruins it for mine before they figure it out on their own.

I was 5 when my mom told me and I was super excited to be able to point out things I wanted in the store. So I'll probably tell my children plus when they start going to school other kids will tell them anyways

I'll wait till they ask, but I'll tell them I was told at 5 I was really excited I knew who to point out presents too. Lol

I didn't ever encourage my kids to belive in Santa easter bunny or tooth fairy but they just started to with the influence of outside sources and it's been fine. We just don't push that it's the important part of the holiday.

My parents were Baptist and never let me believe in Santa or Easter bunny. I feel like I wished I had been able to be like everyone else and been taught to believe in the magic of Christmas. I told my kids the "lie" and still tell them to believe in the magic of Christmas. It teaches them to hope and dream while they are young. None of them were mad at me for lying

No Santa here. Honestly my 4 yr old ds is too smart for that anyway (we have no chimney...and he knows no one is walking In our house/coming through the window w/o the alarm going off lol).

We agree more with the religious meaning. So we teach holidays that way. They also understand that other people celebrate holidays differently and that's ok.

My kids still get gifts and celebrate so no robbing here. It's just looked at differently.

It doesn't Rob kids of anything . Maybe a memory that they won't miss because it will be so many other good memories. The who Santa thing isn't necessary though it's common your children will not miss it nor will they feel robbed

I've been in debate about this, not sure how I was going to handle it. A big part of me doesn't want to do the whole Santa & Easter bunny thing, but then I look back at my childhood, realise how magical I found it all & don't want to rob my child of that because of my bitterness towards the holidays.

I'll be the best damn fake-Santa to set foot on this earth if it kills me.

I was never raised in believing any of that and I know I was not robbed of anything at all. We focused on family and love. I absolutely loved my childhood. I do understand the excitement but I personally don't see how it robs kids of anything.. I don't judge or care if people do decide to participate with Santa and all that at all.

My oldest was always afraid of santa. When her great grandmother told her how he creeps in and leaves gifts it freaked her out more. She didn't like the idea of a stranger coming in the house when everyone was asleep. I told her the truth that it's me and daddy that buys your gifts. She's very appreciative of it. Every Christmas she runs up to me and I get all the hugs and kisses and 'thank you mommy your the best'. Works for me. My 3 year old doesn't believe in him either. Works for my household.

My eldest is 9 and still believes keep the magic alive as long as possible I say

I grew up with Santa and loved it. Eventually I figured it out on my own, but still did and do play along. When I wrap a gift for my hubby, I write that it's from Santa. I love the idea of him. I will absolutely play along for my children, as well as do the cookies & milk and leave crumbs in the morning :). But I'm a magic lover. I will also read them fairy tales and tell them stories as if they really happened, and not tell them they're fake. I remember those moments from my childhood most vividly, and I imagined them and believed in them and they brought me so much joy! I was never disappointed or angry with my parents for making me believe. I just grew out of it. I want my children to experience the same.

I'll just do the same my parents did with me. Stop saying Santa, easter bunny, ect as I got older. Parents still had gifts from Santa and/or bunny to add onto the fun especially around younger siblings.

But I wouldn't ruin my kids imagination and fun..

I believe its robbing them of their childhood innocense.

As a child looking foward to Santa, Easter bunny and Tooth fairy were some of the most memorable and exciting times of my childhood. I think the disappointment of the truth is worth enjoying all that magic as a kid.

My kids asked one day and i told them the truth i expected them to throw a fit. They are 9, 5 and 1. They handled it well but my 5 yo still mentions santa we dont correct her but she knows her gifts comes from mom and dad. Of course the one yo is to young

I grew up not celebrating Santa Claus or the Easter bunny. Christmas was still an amazingly magical time for me and I never felt left out because I didn't believe in Santa. I woke up every Christmas morning to presents under the tree and stockings stuffed with goodies-I just knew they all came from my parents.

My husband feels very strongly that Santa is an unnecessary lie told to children, so we will not be introducing our kids to Santa. We focus instead on the spirit of Christmas and family and love.

I grew up not celebrating any of that and it wasn't "the worse thing in the world" and I surely wasn't robbed of an imagination. To the ones thinking it ruins it lol.

Yes i do think its robbing them. I didnt care when i found out they werent real. It was fun as a kid waking up to see if santa came

"The lights will still twinkle and the decorations still shine. No one needs to sit on a shelf or a keep a list for us. The day will be special simply because it’s Christmas – even if Santa skips our house"

"My friend with the ever-watching elf thinks I am cruel. She thinks it’s truly sad that I have robbed my children of the magic of the holiday. But I don’t see it. My kids still enjoy reading about Santa – as much as they enjoy reading about Harold and his purple crayon or The Cat in the Hat, magical characters who are not actually real but still capture a child’s imagination. My kids will still wake up on Christmas morning to see a sparkling tree with a modest bounty of presents underneath."

My brother is 2 years older than me and I still remember where I was when he told me Santa wasn't real. I was sad by the truth but it wasn't the end of the world. At some point they will find out the truth but it's nice to have the magic for just a little while. Enjoy baking cookies and leaving milk out for Santa, writing letters and other things.

Me and SO won't be supporting the whole Santa Easter bunny etc thing . We will explain about other kids and they will be just as happy .(:

My son is autistic (almost 4 years old) and we have not explained Santa yet as he will not underatand yet but we do intend to introduce him and our next child to the myths of Santa and the Tooth Fairy ect... I remember when I realized Santa was not real and I can remember that I was not upset about the "lie" and I really don't think looking back that the holidays would have been as magical and exciting without those beliefs in Santa

Anyone else??

I fully plan to "lie" to my kids. I can't imagine being a kid without Santa, and the Easter Bunny and Tooth Fairy.

I kind of want to tell him the truth but then I kind of want him to experience the wonder and magic of it all

I think it is. I mean who doesn't remember rushing to the tree Christmas morning to see what Santa left?

My boys enjoy Santa Claus and all the other little tales..

I won't tell them that he doesn't exist because it's exciting to see them excited but I have nothing against parents that tell them otherwise. It's a to each their own type thing. Ds1 is going to be 7 in December and he still believes lol