I was an army brat, and believed my mother when she told us that all the
"extra" Santas were his "helpers". How else could the newsman announce Santa's departure from the North Pole right after I'd seen him waving from a helicopter on the military base AND ringing the bell for the Salvation army kettle (in several locations I might add). I was perplexed as to how you could tell who the real one was. My mother told me that you could never be sure, so I'd better be nice to them all....

Since we moved every year and even lived in Germany for awhile, my mother was forced to be very creative in explaining the different customs and Christmas quirks wherever we lived. I don't kow exactly when I outgrew my belief, I guess it all just strained my credibility too much. But the highlight of my life was singing Rudolf the Red Nosed Reindeer while sitting on Santa's knee in the crowded town hall for Ogden, Kansas when I was 9. My friends excitedly told me the next day that I'd been on the radio! With Santa no less. I was quite a hero with my crowd for a while, especially since I had recieved an extra large "special" stocking stuffed with toys and candy from him for my song.

Ladybug2535

My mom was frequently laid off from work around Christmastime when I was a kid. I never understood why she was so worried about financial stuff around Christmas. She explained to me that Santa made the gifts himself and brought them for free, but she had to pay the post office a fee for him to deliver them.

Anon

Where I grew up, I lived in an apartment with a porch but no fireplace. One year I got a present from Santa on the porch. Being morally afraid of Santa every year of Christmas (until we moved) I would make sure I would lock the porch door tight and place booby traps so Santa wouldn't come through. But every year I would get a present.

Angela

I also was told that due to not having a chimney, Santa had a magic key. I would listen intently, and I swore one year I hear the keys jingling then opening the front door!

anon

My father told my sister and I one year on Christmas eve that Santa and the reindeer were getting really tired of all of the milk and Christmas cookies that all the nice girls and boys left him and that what Santa would REALLY like was just a beer and a salami sandwich.

Did we leave it for him? You bet!

Look for my dad's story about the children in China above!

shallahb

One year at Christmas, my parents were tired of being woken at the wee hours of the morning, so my father told us a little white lie. He actually told us that there had been SO MANY children born in China in the past year that Santa could not POSSIBLY make it to our house before 8 a.m. that year, and that we needed to stay in bed until then. I don't remember anymore whether or not it worked.

My father had all kinds of Santa stories - look for the one about beer and salami below!

shallahb

When I was four or five years old, my parents and I were living in an apartment at the time. It was Christmas, and I asked how Santa Claus got in, because we had no chimney. My mother told me Santa had to come in through the front door. I pointed and asked why I hadn't heard the bells on the wreath (hanging on the front door), and my parents both failed miserably in not laughing.

Eternal Skeptic

Sitting in bed reading, my 9 year old daughter said to me, "Mommy, you know when you are in court and you raise your hand and say you will tell the truth, I want you to raise your hand and tell me if Santa Clause is real"! She told me she was the only one in her class that believed and the kids were making fun of her. Well, I did tell her the truth about Santa, Easter Bunny, and Tooth Fairy. Two weeks later she wanted to know if God was real!

Karen Spicer

When I was a kid, I was told about Santa Clause like most young children. The difference is that when Santa was in your house delivering toys, if you were awake and tried to take a peek at santa that he would spit in your eyes. The spit would make you blind until he would leave if not for life.

Anon

I am the youngest of four kids and I guess my Mom was getting tired of the holiday gift giving thing so when the opportunity came up to burst the bubble on the Easter Bunny, she was happy to stop having to give out the Easter Baskets. The same happened with Saint Nicholas' gift giving a few weeks before Christmas. To me this meant the death knoll for Santa Clause and the almighty gift giving he enabled so I remember my thinking I would never, ever admit to not believing in Santa. That led to my Mom finally coming out and asking me at 15 that I really didn't still believe did I? Oh yes, of course I did I lied.

Rebecca

I used to believe that santa was a woman and we were all his many children.

Quako

One Christmas I didn't leave a mince pie out for Christmas. Dad asked me why. I told him he would be having millions of them and I would get better presents as Father Christmas would not be forced to eat another mince pie.

Anon

When I was younger, I always saw pictures of Santa Claus coming down people's chimneys. But, since we didn't have a fireplace or an open chimney, I never understood how Santa got into our house. So my Mom told me he came in through the dryer vent outside.

A. Nony Mous

Once at preschool, during the holidays, our teachers read us a picture book about Hannukah. They told us that children got presents and chocolate coins, but the picture was of a boy playing with a dark-colored truck, so I thought children got chocolate TOYS.

I also thought that if I was bad, Santa would put, not coals, but CLOTHES in my stocking on Christmas Eve. Even today I dislike getting clothes for christmas.

Anon

when about 6 i was terrified of having a fat bearded old man in my house in the middle of the night whatever he was doing! This fear used to stop me sleeping [rather than the actual excitment of christmas!] eventaully when i plucked up the courage to tell Mum she gave in and told me the truth which at that time was releaving!

Hamish

When I was 5 or 6 my grandparents came to stay with my family for Christmas. When asked about Santa I would say that I didn't believe in him at all. On Christmas I had to sleep on the couch across from the fire place because my grandparents had my room. That night I was certain I saw Santa. Not all of him though, I only saw his big black boots as he went back UP the chimney.

Anon

I thought that santa was an eskimo on ecstacy

Nazza

I heard Santa's sleigh on my roof when I was about 7. I was lying asleep in my bunk bed when I was woken up by a huge clatter on the roof...an I still believe to this day that it was Santa!!

Bexy