Anti-Santa News Anchor

chelseamb11

http://theclicker.today.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/12/02/9167284-no-santa-no-way-news-anchor-sorry-for-dashing-kids-dreams

A news anchor decided to advise parents, on PRIMETIME NEWS, that the best way to help kids lower their Christmas expectations is to just tell them there is no Santa.  She apologized but the damage has obviously been done.


That is so awful.  I would be so upset if I was the parent of a Santa-believing child who saw that.

I thought this would make for an interesting poll too.
How long did you believe in Santa? 
How did you find out he wasn't real?
Are there any people out there who won't be raising their kids to believe in Santa?  If so, why not?

I was like 7 or 8 when I found out.  Other kids had been hinting it to me, so I asked my mom flat out and she told me the truth.  I still want my kids to believe in him.

Snippylynn

I honestly do not recall *the moment* when I stopped believing in Santa or that there was some huge revelation. I believed... then I didn't. *shrug*

Maybe it was when I figured out my mom's handwriting looked exactly like Santa's?

musicalsunlight

How long did you believe in Santa? : I think I was in 2nd or 3rd grade.

How did you find out he wasn't real?: Kids had said stuff sort of and then I went downstairs one day and found the previous year's Santa wrapping paper in the storage room. I remember feeling so betrayed, haha.

Are there any people out there who won't be raising their kids to believe in Santa?  If so, why not?: I am gonna do the Santa thing. It was so so much fun when I was little, and so I want my kids to experience that fun feeling too.

andrea2473

I didn't believe in Santa for long.  My sister is two years older than me and she usually passed on information about stuff like that to me as soon as she got it

I'm torn about raising my kids to believe in Santa.  It's weird.   But it can be fun.  H absolutely wants to do the Santa thing as long as possible but I also think he believed for too long (12?!).   I want to compromise and talk about Santa and how much fun it is to pretend about him without actually lying to my future kids about his existence.  I don't want to take him away entirely, but I have a problem with the lying.  

pinkpinot

I think it's weird that we tell our kids some chubby old man is going to sneak in the house and leave them presents.  What's to stop a kid from getting into the "candy van" with a stranger?  Does that make any sense?  And I'm not anti-Christmas at all and I'm not saying kids that believe in Santa are going to get into vans with strangers. 

Juris11

I would be pissed about this if I had kids watching. Not cool.

I don't recall the moment I stopped believing either. I was a present snoop, so I think I found the presents? I actually remember pretending that I believed when I didn't because it was still fun to write the letters to Santa and put out cookies. Also, I think because I wanted to try to catch my parents being "Santa".

I was maybe 6?

lyndausvi

I was 7 when I found out.   That was the same time I found out about sex also. I learned a lot that week long summer trip up to Racket Lake  - LOL

My brothers ,however, didn't learn until they were like 9? and they are 5 years younger than me, so my sister and I had to play along for a very long time.  It was fun though.

I doubt we will have kids, but we will let them believe in Santa.

musicalsunlight

I wouldn't teach my kid that Santa has tons of money. My parents always told me that Santa gives one present to every child and there was never any reference to it being some huge present or anything. I'll probably do the same thing.

musicalsunlight

One of the old ladies on my street also would send my brothers and I a letter from one of "santa's elves" every year, that was personalized and always included a shiny new penny from that year. I always was amazed that the elf knew such individual things about me and that my brothers and I had a special elf looking after us.

azdancer8

How long did you believe in Santa?  Probably until I was about 8.

How did you find out he wasn't real? I don't remember. My brother and I had to keep pretending so our younger sisters wouldn't find out. I even "was" Santa and the Easter Bunny a few times. I do remember when my sister found out. So my parents figured she also knew about the Easter Bunny and said something- she was so crushed!

Are there any people out there who won't be raising their kids to believe in Santa?  We won't pretend that Santa is the one leaving gifts for the kids, but we'll tell them about Saint Nicholas and where the tradition came from.

If so, why not?  I want them to understand that holidays are about family and faith, not gifts. Plus, I don't want to come to a point where my kids think I've been lying to them (or hiding things from them) for the first 7 or 8 years of their life once they discover the "truth".

Snippylynn

You know... I don't think it's lying to your kids.  I think it teaches them imagination and wonder. FWIW.. kids here don't really learn about the "Christ" part of Christmas. It's about the guy bringing presents.  And also?

Honestly, I don't think that does any harm to a child. At all.

musicalsunlight

I'm Team Snippy here. I had a feeling of betrayal when I found out but it was not directed at my parents. It lasted for like a day and then I got over it.

azdancer8

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_anti-santa-news-anchor?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:cdb0a3f3-274f-4663-8515-95b61fb424b9Post:f727c7f6-e448-4be6-a5ed-5cf9f7975f17">Re: Anti-Santa News Anchor</a>:
[QUOTE]And lastly, <strong>as a Christian, I personally feel there is too much of a blur in a young mind between God and Santa. I'd like to be able to teach my kids about Jesus without having them when they're 7 and find out there's no Santa think "Hmm.... I wonder if Jesus is made up too</strong>."   Just my personal thoughts. I know I'm in the minority.
Posted by djhar[/QUOTE]

I really like the way you put this, DJ.

midgetthemighty

I still get some gifts addressed "From" Santa. I think it's cute. I don't remember when I stopped believing in Santa. In a way, I feel that he exists in the spirit of Christmas but we all know I'm a Christmas addict.

Our kids will totally have Santa in their lives.

DJ, I totally understand where you're coming from and I was raised Christian and Santa-believing. I never correlated them like you're thinking a child might but I'm sure some kids in the same situation did. I guess what I'm trying to say is there's probably a way my parents distinguished the two of them very well for my brother and I. So it can be done. I know you have other reasons for not wanting to have your kids believe in Santa, and that's fine, just felt like sharing my experience.

KarleeKrause35

I believed in santa until I was about 9.

My dad told me when he was frustrated with the fact that I didn't get long division. In the middle of May.

I'm still bitter about it.

Snippylynn

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_anti-santa-news-anchor?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:cdb0a3f3-274f-4663-8515-95b61fb424b9Post:f727c7f6-e448-4be6-a5ed-5cf9f7975f17">Re: Anti-Santa News Anchor</a>:
[QUOTE]IAnd lastly, as a Christian, I personally feel there is too much of a blur in a young mind between God and Santa. I'd like to be able to teach my kids about Jesus without having them when they're 7 and find out there's no Santa think "Hmm.... I wonder if Jesus is made up too."   Just my personal thoughts. I know I'm in the minority.
Posted by djhar[/QUOTE]

So... you don't want your children to question things in life?  That would be bad? I have far more serious issues with this line of thought than anything else.

musicalsunlight

I was raised Christian and I had no trouble distinguishing the Christian reasons for Christmas vs the Santa/present thing. My parents didn't even teach me anything about it either -- my parents rarely even used the word God. I never viewed Santa as a godlike figure. More like fantasy.

BrightFirefly

I'm going to try the whole Santa thing with my kids. It was always fun as a kid - and I didn't feel any resentment towards my parents at all when I found out the truth. I just understood. I was also much older - maybe 10 or 11 - before I truly stopped "believing" - though I'm one of those belivers in spirit of Santa.

For those of you claiming it's lying - good luck never telling your kids a lie - even a white one.

I'm not Christian - so for my kids - Christmas will be about family, generosity, and Santa.

chelseamb11

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_anti-santa-news-anchor?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:cdb0a3f3-274f-4663-8515-95b61fb424b9Post:1dcc414a-d244-4c00-b141-e52525721c5f">Re: Anti-Santa News Anchor</a>:
[QUOTE]I believed in santa until I was about 9. <strong>My dad told me when he was frustrated with the fact that I didn't get long division. </strong>In the middle of May. I'm still bitter about it.
Posted by KarleeKrause35[/QUOTE]

How do those even correlate?

AllAboutTheBenjamin

Well she sucks for bursting the "no Santa" bubble but a journalist loses all credibility in my mind when they say "That's just my take."  No one needs your opinions, hoar.  Facts, please.

I don't remember how old I was.  Maybe third grade.  But I figured it out on my own and asked my mom, and she was honest with me.  I was bummed.  That was followed by... "No Easter bunny either, right?  Or tooth fairy?"  Shitty day.

Snippylynn

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_anti-santa-news-anchor?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:cdb0a3f3-274f-4663-8515-95b61fb424b9Post:1dcc414a-d244-4c00-b141-e52525721c5f">Re: Anti-Santa News Anchor</a>:
[QUOTE]I believed in santa until I was about 9. My dad told me when he was frustrated with the fact that I didn't get long division. In the middle of May. I'm still bitter about it.
Posted by KarleeKrause35[/QUOTE]
That's kind of funny.

musicalsunlight

Also? I don't see the difference between this news anchor saying something vs. the countless broadcast TV shows that allude to the same thing all the damn time.

chelseamb11

Dj, those are some really interesting thoughts, and have a valid point for some families.

However, I was also raised Christian and believing in Santa.  When I found out Santa wasn't real, it never had even occured to me that maybe God or Jesus wasn't either.  Religion is something that is so ingrained year round, whereas Santa is just someone I stared to worry about in November and December.  I think that plays a large role in it too.  But it's really interesting to think about, I  hadn't thought of it that way before.

snwilson0416

I think I was in 3rd grade when I found out. I just remember starting to get suspicious about the whole thing so I asked my parents for the truth. I was disappointed for a little while but I think I got over it fairly quickly.

I'll definitely be doing Santa with my kids. I can see where people are coming from with the lying thing, but I have such fond memories of it now. My dad really went all out with the Santa suit and everything, and he would go outside and throw pine cones on the roof to make it sound like reindeer landing. It was a lot of fun.

AllAboutTheBenjamin

FWIW DJ, I was raised Christian (and still am, you know this ) and we never, ever thought that Jesus wasn't real after figuring out the Santa sham.  Probably because we went to a church and talked about Jesus all the time, and there was no Santa church.  Lol.  I dunno But I can respect your views on this.

We will let our kids believe in Santa.  I mean come on, he's like the the world's Grandpa.  He wears funny clothes and always brings you cool shiit.

Snippylynn

Really DJ? My H was raised in a super religious household, Seventh Day Adventist, in fact, and his parents had Santa. He never had any confusion about differentiating between Santa and Jesus. You are so totally overthinking the impact of Santa alluding for what... 2 months at the most- a year, versus all the other times?  I just think that's a ridiculous argument.

Snippylynn

One of my coworkers was talking the other day about how his parents would go out and make hoofprints in the snow around his house, and he would run around outside to look at them, then look at the neighbors yard and not see any hoofprints and think "HAHA! SANTA DOESN'T LIKE YOU!"

My parents never really did anything 'special' like that for us.

KarleeKrause35

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_anti-santa-news-anchor?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:9Discussion:cdb0a3f3-274f-4663-8515-95b61fb424b9Post:ac88fd25-bf2a-4d4e-af20-016eef332db4">Re: Anti-Santa News Anchor</a>:
[QUOTE]In Response to Re: Anti-Santa News Anchor : How do those even correlate?
Posted by chelseamb11[/QUOTE]

They don't. I was just a kid that was always lost in my own head. I would rather think about candy and puppies than math.
My dad said he did it to "snap me out of it."
I then ran upstairs and would not come out of my room, and my mom wouldn't talk to him because she thought it was cruel.

It's really funny now, but I think he still feels like shiit over it. He's got too much pride to say it, though.

lyndausvi

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_anti-santa-news-anchor?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:cdb0a3f3-274f-4663-8515-95b61fb424b9Post:4aa3650f-7b98-4946-8aea-a9356918b0ff">Re: Anti-Santa News Anchor</a>:
[QUOTE]Also? I don't see the difference between this news anchor saying something vs. the countless broadcast TV shows that allude to the same thing all the damn time.
Posted by musicalsunlight[/QUOTE]

<div>Well I think most parents are not going to think the evening news is going to out-Santa.  </div><div>
</div><div>However, they may think it could happen on a TV show and sensor what they watch.</div>

AllAboutTheBenjamin

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_etiquette_anti-santa-news-anchor?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:9Discussion:cdb0a3f3-274f-4663-8515-95b61fb424b9Post:84d8758b-5bfd-4e14-b454-76ab697a18ea">Re: Anti-Santa News Anchor</a>:
[QUOTE]One of my coworkers was talking the other day about how his parents would go out and make hoofprints in the snow around his house, and he would run around outside to look at them, then look at the neighbors yard and not see any hoofprints and think "HAHA! SANTA DOESN'T LIKE YOU!" My parents never really did anything 'special' like that for us.
Posted by Snippylynn[/QUOTE]

One year we did Christmas in Cali, and my uncle snuck out with a red flashlight and went behind the stone fence in the backyard, and darted it around in the dark.  My parents wanted us to feel like Santa would still come when we were on vacation but I remember thinking that Rudolph's nose was way bigger than I ever imagined and it scared the crap out of me.

musicalsunlight

Eh, i think there are plenty more things on the news that I'd rather not have small children seeing or understanding than in a tv show though. My parents didn't let me watch the news with them until I was about the same age as when I found out about Santa.