Santa is coming. How does he do things at your house? It wasn’t until I was an adult and had children of my own that I realized the way my family did Santa growing up didn’t follow American protocol. Why this surprised me, I will never know. Santa wrapped all our presents, and not one appeared under the tree until he came down the chimney on Christmas Eve. Every present was from Santa, even those to my parents and our dog, Prince. Years later, when my brothers and I knew the deal on Santa, we never said a word and continued to thank Santa “wherever he was.” To this day, presents from our parents say, “Merry Christmas, love Santa.”
I’ve heard now from several sources, including The Mister, that when they were kids, presents start showing up under the tree as soon as it was up and that Santa only delivered three presents, all unwrapped, on Christmas Eve. Sounds a bit anticlimactic, if you ask me. I still like the idea of small children going to bed with a bare tree and waking up to see that same tree stuffed with presents. (Even the most modest of Christmases are impressive with the proper build up.)
I may have to change my tune this year, though. Mikey saw one bag I bought in the trunk of our car last week. I didn’t have time to run home before I picked him up from school, and that kid doesn’t miss a thing. I played it off, but it might have to be his first Christmas gift from mom and dad if he remembers it come Christmas. I’m hoping the excitement of a full tree will muddle his memory.
We did it very similar as you! Although a bit differently. Under the tree before Christmas go all the presents that arrive from other places – aunts and uncles that send them in the mail early, friends, etc. Then Christmas morning we have our stockings and other presents from Santa. Even my parent’s got stuff from Santa. I loved have a few presents scattered throughout the tree in the time coming up (especially since we would giggle and talk about what it could be….the cards were always the best, since we knew money would be in them) and then coming down Christmas morning and seeing the piles? Glorious.
I stand corrected! We did have a couple of presents but, like you, they were from out of country family, friends, and work colleagues. :)
We had a few gifts under the tree from mama and daddy and aunts and uncles, etc but our “big presents” came from Santa Claus and were always set up in a really cool way. Like one year, we got a kid-sized tent that Santa Claus set up in the living room with brand new sleeping bags and more wrapped presents (flashlights and some other “camping” equipment) inside.
Santa always did a great job of proving his existence too. Our old farmhouse had nonfunctioning fireplaces in every room and Santa would leave the cover off the one in the den and leave sooty footprints on the hearth. He’d always wrap presents in a special paper (that I later accidentally discovered hiding in the attic) and make sure to take a bite out of the cookies and leave a hand-written thank-you note. Suspicious that Santa always requested eggnog with a shot of bourbon in it though…
I’m writing a novel… sorry. I distinctly remember being about 9 or 10 (apparently this is a lot older than most kids who still believe?) and asking mama to please tell me if Santa Claus was real or not when I turned 19 so I’d know if I was supposed to get extra presents for my kids one day. I don’t know why I thought 19 would be a good age for that. I guess that seemed grown up enough to handle the truth.
Oh my, that is SO CUTE! Santa does a good job here, too. He leaves a note, eats most of the cookies, and the reindeer eat the grass and oranges we leave for them.
In our house growing up, my Mom was never consistent with Santa. I remember when I was really young (mostly from seeing pictures), Santa left gifts unwrapped for us to discover on Christmas morning (along with stockings stuffed with apples, oranges and nuts, LOL). But as we got older, all the gifts would be wrapped with some appearing under the tree earlier from Mom and Dad and Santa’s appearing on Christmas morning. Santa always gave the big gifts and to this day, I still receive gifts from Santa at my Mom’s house (although now Santa leaves stocking stuffers and Mom gets the credit for the big gifts). I like to sign “Santa” to my husbands gifts from time to time, but Santa visits our house earlier than Christmas Eve, haha!
We always had a mix of gifts- Wrapped and under the tree, there were two (at most) gifts from Santa, plus our stockings. The rest of the gifts were wrapped and under the tree, but had gift tags on them, stating specifically who they were from. No gifts showed up at our house until Christmas morning (more to prevent us from shaking them, or picking at a corner of the wrapping to figure out what was inside, as opposed to needing the element of surprise).
My parents wanted us to have the typical childhood fantasy of Santa and his reindeer- leaving the milk and cookies and carrots and sugarcubes out, listening for the sleigh on the roof, etc- but they also wanted us to be aware that real, live people that we knew and loved were also going to the trouble of getting us gifts. And, as my mom put it “How do you write 10 Thank You notes, all addressed to Santa?” Additionally, we opened gifts from my mom’s family on Christmas Eve night, so there would be no way to explain that Santa came once on Christmas Eve, and then again on Christmas morning (when we opened gifts and did stockings with my nuclear family) and then again on Christmas Day night (when we opened gifts with my dad’s family)…being honest about some gifts coming from Santa and others coming from Mom and Dad and Grandma and Grandpa and Aunts and Uncles meant my parents didn’t have to lie to us as much! Hahaha!
Sounds like our house did things the way yours did – presents from out of towners went under the tree when they arrived, but our immediate family gifts don’t come out until the middle of the night before Christmas. My brother and I each had separate wrapping paper to denote our gifts from “Santa,” although one or two things would be from “Mom & Dad,” I guess so they would get some accolades that morning. Even now that we’re all grown up everyone takes turns pretending to sneak each others’ gifts under the tree; it still seems a little magical when we trot down in the morning.
Do you guys do the crazy early Christmas morning? My dad did growing up; they’d all be up at 5 screaming and hollering (this apparently terrified my mom the first Christmas she spent there). We’re a bit more mellow in my house, but my dad always still gets up crazy early, then sits around until he can’t stand it anymore and drags us out of bed.
As presents trickled in from aunts and uncles, they’d be placed under the tree, but Santa’s gifts were always unwrapped and left magically in the night before Christmas.
We’d know it was Santa by the drained glass of milk and cookie crumbs left behind.
My dad grew up getting to open one gift on Christmas Eve. But he apparently never liked this and called shenanigans on it. Christmas morning was the ONLY day my brother and I could open a gift.
We didn’t get presents sent in from out of town, because we’d be visiting all of that family for parties after Christmas anyway, so we had a bare tree until Christmas morning as well. But, my sisters and I would exchange presents with each other, and give them to our parents, who also gave us presents as well. We’d open our one present from our parents on Christmas Eve, because we’d be so dang excited, we couldn’t handle it anymore, so they’d cave and give us just the one. Then we’d wake up on Christmas morning to piles under the tree. My parents even gave each other their presents under the guise of Santa as well. I was unaware that the common tradition was only a few unwrapped presents from Santa that appeared overnight. I think only really special gifts (like, when my sister got an American Girl doll aaaaaaaages ago, before they were quite so insane) were unwrapped so we could see them and freak out on the way down the stairs.
Santa leaves big presents (bikes, toy kitchen) unwrapped here, too. I think this year it’s a gulf putter net thing.
Growing up Santa brought everything. Always wrapped, always showing up in the early hours of Christmas. The tree was always bare when I went to bed and full when I woke up. The anticipation of what would be there, how many gifts and what sizes they would be was the best! I didn’t receive presents from my parents, Santa took care of it all.
With the girls I do roughly the same. We do chose one gift though, a joint gift, and usually the biggest to be from Greg and I. Santa’s not getting credit for everything LOL. This year I’ve been wrapping the gifts we’re giving to other people and leaving them under the tree. As friends and family visit, the girls get a kick out of passing them out. They won’t be seeing any of their gifts though until Christmas morning.
We do things similar to how The Mister’s family rolls. I grew up that way too. Santa leaves the stockings filled and then some cool stuff that he doesn’t feel like wrapping, but everything goes under the tree as it gets wrapped.
I, from a very large family, had a few presents from adults under the tree as they arrived in the mail. The big reveal came Christmas morning. Never opened anything until morning. Cookies, notes and some years hay for the reindeer were left. I got a letter from santa one year, and yes I still have it!
When my guys were little and we went to TX for my husbands family Christmas ( small family, less children), my kids had to wait until everyone was up and fed before the opening began. Pure torture I say!
We always have a mix of “from santa” and “from mom & dad”. Stockings are pure santa : )
Still love, love, love waking up and seeing all of the presents multiplied!
And… we are having a bit of a scavenger hunt for one of my son’s BIG presents this year (bow only). Fun!
AND.. we are careful to spell out the presents for our dog. Just in case she is starting to speak our language : )
We never had presents under the tree before Christmas morning. I have three sisters and Santa always brought us everything wrapped. Santa was so organized he even wrapped all our presents in 4 different, but coordinating, kinds of wrapping paper so we could distinguish who’s gift was who’s. Clever Santa!!
Growing up there were presents under the tree shortly after it was put up….then the big kahuna was there on Christmas morning. Almost always, Santa did not wrap his presents to us. And adults NEVER got Santa presents. And I wish dh and I did stockings for each other. I love love LOVE stockings. (yep, there was the one requisite orange or apple but the rest was pure unadulterated sugar and useless but fun things)
I’m trying to shift things more towards more of the gifts being from us and less from Santa. Either way, kids get too much for Christmas. I should know. I just wrapped a bunch of presents. :/
My family always did things fairly similar to yours. No gifts were ever put under the tree until my brother and I had gone to bed. My mom told me years ago she and my dad always had fun stuffing all of our gifts under the tree while we were asleep. 75% of the gifts said “from Santa” and the others were from “Mom & Dad.” The only gifts that ever went unwrapped were those too large for wrapping paper, such as bicycles, large awkward-sized toys, and, one year, a ping pong table! Those items just had a large bow and gift tag on them. My brother and I would leap out of bed at an unmentionable time Christmas morning and my parents were always good sports, getting up with us when they’re probably just gone to sleep after their gift-placing extravaganza.
Merry Christmas from the frigid arctic of 13th and Samson in Mid-town Philadelphia. Its only 29 degrees and I am reading all the comments. I seriously just wish I was home, but I will weigh in on the subject of “The Big Man in Red” protocol. Gifts are wrapped via the family and friends, including Mommies and Daddies (via usually Mommies when Daddies are away on business). And yes, Mommies are the BACKBONE to a successful christmas and childhood. I digress, sorry, to be followed by some gifts wrapped and unwrapped when the big man raids the cookies and milk. On another note: if your ever in Phillie, a cool little place with not a whole lot of fuss might be: Zavino’s down on 13th and Samson (aka: a block away from the YouTube Video of Random Act of Culture @ Philllie Macy’s) . Good town, nice folks, just a litlle chillie: Ho, Ho, Ho, Merry Christmas
You’re awesome, and we miss you. I still don’t understand how you typed up that long comment on that crazy blackberry of yours. :)
xo
j
Santa around this border towns (El Paso TX and Juarez MX) is even bilingual. We do the wrapped gifts that appear in the middle of the night . One specific year we did not have a fire place, so my son was sweating thinking that he would not get anything because there would be no way in to the house for Santa. Luckily we were able to build one last minute and peace came back to our house. As a kid I remember that there were times that the presents would appear even in the backyard…Man that was exciting!!! Oh and one more thing, we don’t limit ourselves to cookies, there’s been a couple of times when Santa eats sweet bread too.
If I remember correctly, big presents always came from Santa and others were from dad / mum (though I honestly don’t remember too many Christmas’ with both of them — parents were divorced when I was young!) But I do remember that BIG BIG (like a toy stroller for dolls) presents were left unwrapped. And no presents were under the tree until Christmas morning. (except for the few from grandparents and friends and long distance relatives of course)
Even now (at 21) my dad (& step mum) will play Santa and stay up late to put out all the presents so when we awake on Christmas, Santa has come. And our stocking is the only thing Santa gives us now. :) (And to be honest, I still like the fact that I’m still receiving my stocking from Santa!)
OH! And I remember finding out the secret about Santa when one year I hid the carrots for Santa’s reindeer and didn’t tell my parents and the next day they were still there! My mum still says I was clever doing so :) Genius kid I am if I do say so myself. ;)
PS: Jules, I love that you can EDIT your comments for 4 minutes after you send it! GREAT feature! (And of course I added the PS with an edit ;) Hah)
I grew up with a mix. There were always a few gifts under the tree from my family by Christmas Eve and we got to open up one gift on Christmas Eve after returning from church service. The next morning there were more gifts, all wrapped, from Santa and my parents. I basically do the same thing. I put a few gifts from family and myself out about a week before Christmas. Then I put Santa’s gifts under the tree after my daughter goes to bed on Christmas Eve. I’m sorry but I’m needy to and want to share the praise and thanks Santa gets every Christmas morning.
Growing up, the Christmas in our family was much like yours. There weren’t gifts under the tree until Christmas morning and they were all wrapped and from Santa. We also got the customary orange in our stockings which is how I finally pieced together the whole Santa thing. I happen to love fresh oranges and I noticed two in the fridge drawer on Christmas Eve. The next morning I was hoping to have one. I got one in my stocking (so did my brother) and then I looked in the fridge (I like my oranges cold) and the two that were in the fridge were no longer there. I was 10 or 11 and pretty much on to the whole Santa thing but this cemented it. To this day, my parents have never admitted anything to me and if I ask them for tips on how to be sneaky with our own children they act like I’m crazy. “What are you talking about? Santa delivers all of the presents.” Our children are both pretty observant so we have wrapped gifts from mom, dad, sister, brother, etc. and placed them under the tree. Santa’s gifts will be unwrapped and show up on Christmas eve or morning. Santa has gone as far as taking presents out of packaging because nothing is worse than waiting for your parents to cut or untwist 72 ties when you just want to play with your remote control car. And don’t even get me started on the plastic…I’d love for those elves to stop outsourcing but the kids just don’t appreciate wooden toys like they used to.
Oh, man – tread lightly here! I’ll never forget the year (I think I was about 7 and already suspecting some kind of Santa ‘jig’ was up…. but still) I accidentally came across the wrapping paper with Santas on it that my mom had used to wrap the “Santa” gifts for Christmas a few days prior. My heart sank and I knew right then: Mom = Santa. Kids do notice those things! Maybe use the bag for a gift you’re giving someone else? Or save it for next year?
When I was really young and an only child, all presents that were not from Santa went under the tree whenever they arrived. I was allowed to open one present from my parents on Christmas eve, and it was always new pajamas. When I was older and had several younger siblings, we started opening gifts to each other and from other family members on Christmas eve, so Christmas morning was just for Santa. Our presents from Santa were always organized by child. The stocking stuffers were from Santa too, and the stocking was often on top of our collection of gifts. We moved a lot and often did not have a fireplace or anaywhere to hang stockings.
Perhaps you could have the best of both worlds … a friend of mine, in celebration of Advent, allows her boys to open one gift each Sunday. Just little things … usually something they can use. Of course, they also don’t put their tree up until Christmas Eve … and then celebrate through Epiphany. But I kinda like the idea …
We always had presents showing up under the tree as soon as it was up. I love the anticipation of wondering what’s in there, and a tree w/o presents under it just looks so naked to me! The presents from Santa always appeared Christmas morning, and were always fully wrapped. Unwrapped gifts seem more naked than a bare-bottomed Christmas tree.
We do it similarly with our kids, except that Santa, for some reason, started leaving his gifts on the hearth. It works out well, because they stand out more than they would if they were just added to the pile.
As for proving his existence…well, my older son likes to leave his note for Santa out on Christmas Eve, and Santa always responds. :)