Personally, I never grew up believing that there was a Santa.  I knew exactly what was under the Christmas for me because I picked it out myself.  Because we didn’t have much money and what was purchased were things of necessity, like clothes and shoes.

But now with 2 kids of my own, I bought into the tradition of creating the fun and magical moments for my kids that I never experienced.  I enjoy seeing them wake up on xmas morning excited to know that Santa came to visit them and left them something special.

At 10 and 8 years old, my kids still believe I think, but I know the time is coming where I’ll need to decide whether to continue to try and keep them believing or tell them what really is going on.

So previously, I’ve been able to get away with their questions with these responses…

1. “What do you think?”
2. “How do you think the presents get there?”

It’s usually not confirming or denying but reflecting the question back to them.  My kids never pressed the issue but if you have very inquisitive kids, you might not get away with it so easily.

Some moms have used these responses to continue the tradition…

1. “I guess you have to figure that out for yourself”
2. “Santa is only real if you believe and if they don’t, then he isn’t real to them”
3. “He has a special key that unlocks any door for houses without a chimney”
4. “If you don’t believe, you don’t receive!”

If your kids stop believing, here are some responses that may help you explain why you been telling them about Santa all these years…

1. “Santa is a part of the spirit of Christmas”
2. “Santa may not be real but the magic of Santa is”
3. “The spirit of Santa was real”
4. “St Nicholas was real and Santa was a fun story that makes Christmas magical.”  You can even go on the internet together to read up on the history of St. Nicholas.

And if you have kids that take it really hard, I absolutely love this letter that I came across the internet somewhere to help explain the spirit of Santa Claus.  There are many versions of this but I really like this one. (And if this belongs to you, please let me know so that I can give you the proper credit for it)

If you have younger siblings, you could even convince your older child who now knows what really happens that they can help continue on the spirit of Santa to continue making it fun for their younger siblings.

Kids love being a part of something that the adults plan and especially if it means they know something that their siblings don’t.

So I think that is definitely what I will do when the time comes. I have my canned responses but I will also use a response similar to what’s in the letter. It captures exactly what we all aim for when introducing Santa into our kids lives.

“Santa is love and magic and hope and happiness.”

At the end of the day, it really is about enjoying quality time with family and friends, the spirit of giving and creating family traditions and memories.