• Shop
  • Contact
  • About Me
  • Category

Nicole Fergesen

December 12, 2016

Why We Don’t Do Santa

This post contains affiliate links, which means, if you click the link on my website I may make a small commission for advertising this product to you. It does not cost you more, but it helps to keep my site running. Thank you for your support!

Why We Don't Do Santa

 

This is going to sound like the biggest ba-humbug statement ever, but our family doesn’t do Santa. (I know, I can hear you gasping in horror from here). Now, please let me explain. I am not out to make my kids’ childhoods terrible or deprive them of something awesome. It is just something that we decided wasn’t something for us. Here are a few reasons why:

We want the credit.

My husband busts his butt to provide a nice home for our family and put food on the table (and I make a few pennies here and there, but nothing to support our family on). That magical moment when the kids are opening gifts and they are in AWE of the great gifts they got; oh how I live for that! And to hear them utter “thanks SANTA” instead of “thanks mom/dad”? No thanks. I spent hours planning, shopping, and wrapping. Why would I let my kids believe someone else gave them that gift? No sir! I am selfish, and I am completely ok with that!

It is confusing.

We are Christians, so we believe and teach our kids about Jesus and his birthday. That’s the meaning of the season, right? While I know there are ways to teach about Jesus and Santa cohesively and without taking away from the true meaning of the season, we just couldn’t figure out how to balance that. Our focus as parents was to point our kids to Jesus, and we felt that by introducing Santa would only take away from the true meaning of the season.

It is complicated.

Since our kids are all under the age of four, they aren’t quite to that age where they can think about the dynamics of the whole Santa thing. But, I’ve heard of the questions the kids come up with- and I can understand why it would be confusing! How can one man visit the millions of kids around the world? How does he enter homes with no fireplace? How do reindeer actually fly? How old is Santa? The story is flawed. And I know I would feel like I was lying to my kids or misleading them if I couldn’t answer sufficiently. I just can’t get beyond the fact that I would straight up lie to my kids. It just feels unnecessary.

 

We try very hard to make the Christmas season magical for our kids. So, even though we don’t introduce Santa, the season is filled with love and fun traditions. We cut down a tree at a local farm and decorate it as a family. We open special Christmas jammies. We go see Christmas lights. We open presents and stockings on Christmas morning, as well as other days throughout December with family/friends. We read the story of Jesus’ birth from the Bible on Christmas. Our kids watch Christmas movies, some of which have Santa in it. I am not anti-Santa, we just don’t “do” it. We are a few years into this parenting thing and our kids seem to have survived thus far!

What do you do as a family? Do you introduce Santa or not? Do you have any special traditions? Share and let me know if you agree!

Why We Don't Do Santa

Did you check out my other Christmas gift guides? Click the links below for some gift-buying inspiration!

Gift guide for men

Gift guide for women

Gift guide for children

 

Did you enjoy this post? Don’t forget to subscribe here! Make sure to join the @nicolefergesen community on instagram! Follow me and shop me outfits here. Don’t miss out on updates and inspiration! You can also join my Facebook community and follow my current interests over on my Pinterest. Buy a digital copy of Marcus’ book here.

Share this:

  • Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window) Facebook
  • Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window) Pinterest
  • Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window) Email
  • Click to share on X (Opens in new window) X
  • Click to share on Reddit (Opens in new window) Reddit
  • Click to share on Tumblr (Opens in new window) Tumblr
  • Click to share on LinkedIn (Opens in new window) LinkedIn
  • Click to print (Opens in new window) Print

Related

Posted In: Babies, Faith, Uncategorized · Tagged: advent, anti-santa, children, Christ, christmas, christmas day, christmas gift, christmas presents, christmas tradition, Christmastime, elf, family tradition, family traditions, holiday, holiday tradition, holidays, jesus, Jesus is the reason, Jesus is the reason for the season, kids, no Santa, presents, santa, traditions, tree

Comments

  1. Sarah says

    December 12, 2016 at 10:27 am

    Yes! All the things ive been thinking and saying!! You explained it perfectly! 🙂
    Rowen just started asking about santa (since he is everywhere right now) so i just explained the story of whete it started…who saint nicholas is…it seemed to satisfy him 🙂
    My mom explained it to me as a game other families play…and told me it wouldnt be nice to ruin it for them. (After i went to my neighbors after figuring it out and announced to them “santa isnt real, its your parents” haha little 5 year old me was bold i guess. 😉

    Reply
    • Nicole Warner says

      December 12, 2016 at 10:30 am

      That’s a great idea! Scarlett has been asking too and I have been telling her it’s a story. I like your mom’s idea of saying it’s a game so we don’t ruin it for others! Great suggestions!

      Reply
  2. Kelsey Beam says

    December 12, 2016 at 10:58 am

    I 100% agree and have always felt this way! I never believed in Santa and it did not take one bit of the excitement away from Christmas! And it made me very thankful for our parents and the gifts they bought us. Great post!

    Reply
    • Nicole Warner says

      December 12, 2016 at 11:03 am

      Thank you! So glad you agree!

      Reply
  3. Lily May says

    December 12, 2016 at 1:23 pm

    Very well said and explained my dear! Love this post!

    Reply
  4. Natalie says

    December 12, 2016 at 8:12 pm

    Such a great post, Nicole! I love your reasons.

    Reply
  5. Naomi Libby says

    December 14, 2016 at 8:34 pm

    We do the same thing for the same reasons! She knows about Santa from Christmas movies, but isn’t confused yet about whether he’s real or not. Although, I will confess, sometimes I’ve thought it would be nice to be able to use the whole “be good or Santa won’t bring you toys” line to entice good behavior ?

    Reply
    • Nicole Warner says

      December 14, 2016 at 10:06 pm

      I have thought about that too! Nothing like a little threat to truly behave ?

      Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Hey There!

About Me
I am Nicole Fergesen, mama to six, born and raised New Englander and new Iowan. I believe in Jesus, am obsessed with my family and homemaking, and love functional fashion. I also dabble in home design and relentlessly find beauty in everything. Wife to Dustin, widow of Marcus, and working on blending a family and finding grace in the journey.
Blending a Family: The Raw Reality
Caring for the Widow and Saying Thank You // Family Pictures 2019
Whimsical Girls Bedroom Reveal
A Busy Mom's Guide To Meal Planning

Subscribe to Heart Notes, our Newsletter

* indicates required
  • Shop
  • Contact
  • About Me
  • Category

Join the List

CONNECT

  • Facebook
  • Instagram
  • Pinterest

Copyright © 2025 Nicole Fergesen · Theme by 17th Avenue