Wanting to of course to be the ever intentional (funny that intentional is almost trendy) mother.
And with the holidays here, and my kids getting older.
The question is coming up again about Santa.
Oh vey, who knew Santa would give me so many headaches.
Lots of families do Santa, and its fun.
I remember doing Santa as a kid, waiting up at night, hoping to catch a glimpse.
Being at a friends house one year, whose dad went as far to ring bells on a rooftop, to keep the magic alive.
I remember getting older, having doubts, and the perfect statement by mom, he will come as long as you believe. And I being wise, knew exactly what that meant, and so I believed.
Heck mom if your reading this, I STILL believe.
And that part I love.
The magic. The belief. The tradition. The excitement.
But the holiday being encompassed by a Santa craze. I dislike. A lot.
The greed part, I dislike a lot.
Especially for my kids, and my family.
And I can't help but cringe, (similarly to the way I cringe about Barney, or Dora) when the topic of Santa comes up.
So much that I have been tempted to say blahhhh.. we dont do that, in our house.
This is the first year, she is asking, wondering.
And I have honestly been completely avoiding, as my heart goes each way.
And so I've been on the fence about what to do, praying for guidance.
Asking the Lord what would He want me to do.
And if your looking for answers I have none.
This blog post doesn't wrap itself into a pretty little package.
I will say when Santa walked through the doors of a holiday party my girls eyes lit up.
And that part I loved.
When Cade hugged Santa for an awkwardly long period of time, I loved.
The joy, I love.
And really praying and seeking guidance, on how to make the excitement of our holiday
be true, with simply Jesus. Which is tricky when Santa is marketed really well for my 3 & 4 year old.
And so I guess as I type my solution, flutters in my head.
And its simple.
I pray.
I pray that they get bits of magic (without me exaggerating it in our home)
with letters to Santa Clause, because who doesn't like to dream.
I pray.
Pray the Lord reigns higher than "ho ho ho's" and elfs on shelfs.
That the really big miracle, is not a large man scooting down our chimney,
but that would be a fun part of storytelling and folklore.
And then speak to them, teach them.
That truth, would come from the baby in the manger.
And then lead by example.
And all I can do is make that.. be what makes my eyes light up.
What makes my heart set on fire.
Not a good sale at Target. Or the run run run of the holiday season.
7 little notes:
We are doing this too...back and forth , back and forth. So so hard...especially with so many people wanting to give to your (mine) kids....do you know what I got this year from someone (an adult) about Christmas, as we're saying please not too much..."i dont care...Christmas is about toys." Ummmmmmm, excuse me?!?? Yikes. Exactly what im trying to teach my kids. :/ we are right in the thick of childhood greed...must come at 5. Lord, help us. We are trying...
I struggled with this same thing and as a child raised in a Christian home, I hated feeling less "christian" because I believed in Santa. Yes, a child can be made to feel more or less Christian. lol Anyway, this year I think I finally came up with a solution. I told the kids the true story of who St. Nicholas was, everything about him and how he loved serving God and loved blessing others in secret, so that one hand did not see what the other hand was doing. After I told them the story and watched their little brains ticking away, we watched the veggietales st. nick movie, which was surprisingly accurate, yet very age appropriate, and then we have proceeded to have very few gifts, because after all, it is not OUR birthday. My kids are now just as excited as being like Jesus and doing what Santa does and giving to other people. It's been amazing to watch how much they can truly understand at this age and how loving and generous their egocentric little selves can still be. So we have the magic but instead of taking away from Jesus, I feel like they are complimenting each other well. ;)
I love what DeBran shared, every single word of it! We did Santa, (When I was a child and with our own son) but it certainly wasn't the focus of our celebration. And ... when it was over, it was over and my son, who is now 19, wasn't devasted because we had also shared the story of St. Nicholas, and that, the Spirit of Christmas, will always be something to believe in. As a Christian mother, who works in a large homeschool co-op, I often come across other Christians who say with pride, "We didn't/don't do Santa!" as if it somehow makes them superior to me because I did. I can appreciate their point of view, but doing or not doing Santa has no Biblical basis, there is no commandment regarding Santa. My answer to them is "We did, and it was fun while it lasted. But ... it was never the main emphasis of our holiday season." Santa was no more important than the fact that I taught my son to put money in the Salvation Army's bucket every time, every time, he sees one. (For years we rang the bells together and that will forever be a favorite memory for both of us.) If you don't already do it, you might want to adopt one of our favorite things to do at Christmas; we take Baby Jesus out of the nativity and hide him until Christmas morning when we read the Christmas story. Now that just never gets old! Santa has passed, but Jesus lives! My advise is don't over think it and don't apologize for your decision, no matter which way you go. You know what is best for your beautiful family. Trust in that truth! Destiny
Loving your thoughts on Santa so much and all the thoughtful comments left here. Santa is an ongoing conversation for us here too. I've never been flat out asked by Annabelle if he is real or not...she did tell me the other day that she thinks there are lots of Santas, and that he rides in a sled on the ground, pulled by reindeer instead of through the sky, and that he comes through people windows, not down the chimney, so apparently she's on to him. I don't remember ever believing in Santa Claus like most kids do but I don't remember " not doing Santa" either.But I will say that my memories of Christmas as a child were full of wonder and magic. And I hope + pray that Christmas time for my children will be full of wonder and magic and getting to know and love Jesus better.
Rylan's face is priceless in that picture sitting on his lap. She looks like she's really thinking hard.
I never believed in Santa. I thought all the other kids were pretty laughable for believing. My parents refuse to even tell us about him. But Christmas still came - my parents went nutz with the presents every year no matter how broke we were... and I think THAT is where the issue lies. We are minimizing everything. And trying to keep the magic (astonishment) found ONLY in Jesus. Getting stuff and more stuff seems to be the main focus these days whether or not you believe in Santa or NOT. THe point I am trying to make with my kids is Jesus is no ordinary gift. HE is REAL and he is the only gift worth any value. Santa is fun while it lasts. But I don't even think my kids are really all that into "Santa" I think all they care about is the gifts... so really either way, the lesson needs to be learned. Sorry this is so choppy.
Funny, we seem to be going through the same heart aches, I blogged these same thoughts and feelings just hours before you. I think the deeper we walk with Jesus the more we feel icky with the whole santa and elf thing.Love your heart.
We had Santa come when my kids were little, and I believe they wouldn't mind seeing him come today and they are far from little children today. The magic of Santa is a memorable time for kids. With saying that, the kids also knew that Santa was celebrating the birth of Jesus by giving to others. (Unfortunately that part is left out in the commercialization of the holiday.) We would celebrate Jesus's birth in various ways as well. Santa's way to celebrate was to give them one present on Christmas night and family and friends would provide other gifts. Our way was to buy a present for the Angel Tree, an organization that gives a gift to a child whose parent is in jail. (One year our children picked slippers and we got some for them and our children. Whenever they wore them we would try to pray for that family.) We would make a birthday cake for Jesus and sing, with sometimes Santa getting that instead of a cookie. We would wrap up a gift for someone who represented Jesus and leave it on their doorstep with an anonymous word of thanks. We would participate in our Church's Christmas pageant, light our advent candle, and read the Christmas story. We would sing about Jesus at nursing homes and make Operation Christmas Child boxes for other countries to tell others about Jesus. We would give to a family in need. We would enjoy the Jesse Tree. Santa is not Christmas, Jesus is Christmas. Santa is just another tool to tell your story about the one the season is about. The book, Santa's Favorite Story by Hisako Aoki, helps put things in prospective for little ones. I prayed fervently about my children knowing the meaning of Christmas and loving the Savior behind the birthday, and I know my prayers were answered...abundantly. They will be for you ladies as well.
Post a Comment