Camping with the Mediocre Dad

Camping tips, tricks and advice from a fairly average parent and a reformed dad blogger

Menu
  • Home
  • About
  • Camping
  • Family Days Out
  • Sponsorship
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Why celebrate mediocrity?
Menu

Fatherhood²: The Santa Delusion, aka Keeping the Dream Alive

Posted on December 17, 2013January 7, 2018 by Henry Elliss

imageWith the major disruption and stress of our house move now behind us, the Christmas spirit has well and truly arrived in the Elliss household. The Christmas tree is up and decorated, the tinsel is hung and the wreath has yet to be stolen from our front door. We’ve even had multiple viewings of the Snowman. Things are really getting Christmassy at last.

With the arrival of the season of giving comes a number of parenting quandaries: How do you give generously without spoiling? Should you arm your child with a card for everyone in their class, or just some? How do you get my son to say “advent”‘properly, rather than “advert calendar”? To name but 3!

But the quandary I have been thinking about most – mainly due to the flurry of debate I have seen amongst some of my fellow parent bloggers – is that of good old Santa Claus.

Now Santa doesn’t sound like he should be a contentious fella, but take my word for it – he divides opinion even more than Miley Cyrus’s work ethic.

The main point of contention is about Santa’s very existence. A growing number of parents are taking the view that telling your child that Santa is real is akin to lying to them. I’ve even seen one person suggest it is cruel and “mocking”, almost akin to bullying your child through laughing at their idiocy.

Then there’s the debate about how long you should keep up the charade, with opinions divided on that one just as much. Yesterday, Dad Blogger Patrick even suggested a “Santa Standard” of nine years old, which we should all agree on.

Now I’m not going to presume enough about any of my readers to lecture you, or tell you what you should or shouldn’t tell your children. Do whatever you like – all I ask is one simple thing:

If you DO decide to take the magic of Santa out of your family, take a moment to explain to your child that not everyone will be doing the same. In other words, tell your child not to ruin the magic for others.

That’s all I ask – and I don’t think it’s a big request. In the same way that you teach a child that it’s rude to spit or swear, or that hitting other children is wrong, explain the Santa thing to them.

Now I realise that asking your child not to reveal the “truth” behind Santa isn’t going to be foolproof – we all know that children can be spectacularly cruel to each other when they want to be. But if your lesson means even one little child gets to retain the magic of Santa for one more year – before the cruel realities of the world reveal themselves to them in one more way – you’ll have done some good.

And isn’t that what Christmas is all about after all?

Share this:

  • Twitter
  • Facebook
  • Reddit
  • Pinterest
  • Email
  • WhatsApp
  • Print
  • Children
  • christmas
  • father
  • father christmas
  • Parenting
  • presents
  • santa claus
  • Leave a Reply Cancel reply

    This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

    henweb

    henweb

    Pun-loving, 👨‍👦‍👦 dad-blogging, 📷 photo-taking, 🏰 Lego-making, 🎅🏿 beard-wearing, 👶 child-caring dad of 2. 💍 Husband of 1. 💩 Strategist

    View Full Profile →

    Instagram Gallery

    Obligatory snow shot ❄️ Obligatory snow shot ❄️
    A few photos from my slightly hair-raising morning A few photos from my slightly hair-raising morning walk. Some lovely sunrises, lots of ice on the canal and a couple of rivers and lakes that were quickly merging together, at the expense of the newly-laid track. At least my wellies stayed strong!
    Instagram post 18021846115464989 Instagram post 18021846115464989
    A photo from my Thursday morning walk. One good th A photo from my Thursday morning walk. One good thing to come from this week’s rail strikes (and the subsequent week WFH) was my daily sunrise walks - something I really miss when I have to go into London. Fingers crossed that 2023 allows for a few more of them.
    Merry Christmas, instagram family and friends. Ple Merry Christmas, instagram family and friends. Please enjoy this photo of our beautiful but low-key Christmas decorations, hung in the splendor of our delightful Tudor home.
    Good morning from Somerset #NoFilter Good morning from Somerset #NoFilter
    Load More… Follow on Instagram

    A little ad for some stuff




    Subscribe by RSS

    RSS Feed RSS – Posts

    Recent posts

    • 5 Tips to Make Family Travel Easier December 2, 2022
    • 5 Great Camping Blogs You Should Follow August 18, 2022
    • Summer Holidays in the Mountains? 4 Reasons Why You Should Go for it! June 7, 2022
    • Family Camping for Beginners – A Guide to Buying a New Tent May 31, 2022
    • The Best New Beauty Treatments to Prepare for Summer May 31, 2022

    A bigger ad for some stuff

    Recent Comments

    • Family Camping for Beginners - The Ultimate Guide for first time campers | Camping with the Mediocre Dad on Family Camping for beginners – Food, glorious food
    • Tiana on Fatherhood²: The Ultimate Octonauts Quiz
    • The best camping gadgets for your next trip with the family | The Mediocre Dad on Family Camping for Beginners – The Ultimate Guide for first time campers
    • Dynamite dad blogs | Samuel Windsor on Family Camping for Beginners – The Ultimate Guide for first time campers
    • Family Camping for Beginners - The Ultimate Guide for first time campers | The Mediocre Dad on Family Camping for beginners – Camping with Babies & Toddlers

    My Brimpton Village history website

    My Mastodon profile

    © 2023 Camping with the Mediocre Dad | Powered by Minimalist Blog WordPress Theme
    Find me on Mastodon