How to be a Good Santa Claus

There is much more to being Santa than putting on a hat.

Being Santa Claus to your kids is much more than buying the top toys on their lists and sneaking them under the tree. Perfecting the art of being Santa requires careful planning, strategically placing cues to build excitement and stealth execution on Christmas Eve. Adopt family traditions that carry from year to year making Christmas and the Santa Claus experience so special, that even after they stop believing, the spirit of Christmas will carry on in your home.

Difficulty:

Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Advent calendar or Advent chain
• A basket of Christmas books
• Toys and gifts
• Tool set
• Batteries
• Wrapping paper
• Tape

Preparing for Christmas Eve

1. Fill an advent calendar with tiny gifts presents image by Horticulture from Fotolia.com

   Fill and advent calendar with small toys and trinkets or make an advent chain with special sayings on each link. Count down the days until the holiday with this daily ritual that directs our hearts and minds toward Christmas Day.

2. Bring out the basket of Christmas books each December Christmas Printed Music image by Lucy Cherniak from Fotolia.com

   Read Christmas-themed bedtime stories throughout December. Add a new book or two to your collection each year. Kids look forward to seeing special books that are put away after Christmas.

3. Help write your child's Christmas list wish list ,xmas image by Neil Denize from Fotolia.com

   Sit with your children to make Christmas lists. Help them choose items for their lists that they will use, are well-constructed, and that they could actually receive.

4. Check the list Santa. Santa's Naughty & Nice List image by Infs from Fotolia.com

   Shop for the items on your child's Christmas list. A child expects to get what he asks for if he is good and "Santa Claus is Coming to Town" reinforces the idea that "you better be good for goodness sake". See that top Christmas list items are under the tree on Christmas morning, if at all possible.

5. Assemble toys and put in batteries. Batteries image by DXfoto.com from Fotolia.com

   Assemble and wrap in your workshop prior to Christmas Eve. December 24th at midnight is too late to realize you forgot to buy batteries for a toy or that a piece is missing.

6. Talk with your kids about their expectations. christmas teens image by Gina Smith from Fotolia.com

   Discuss your kids' expectations for the night. Whether they believe or not, they may be secretly wishing for something special. If you know about it before Christmas, you may be able to make it happen rather than hearing the next day that Santa let your child down.

And the Children are Tucked All Snug in Their Beds

1. Santa's milk and cookies milk and cookies image by Leticia Wilson from Fotolia.com

   Drink Santa's milk and eat his cookies first. You need energy for the night, and you do not want to forget.

2. Strategically place gifts from Santa. under the tree image by sumos from Fotolia.com

   Fill stockings and arrange gifts from Santa under the tree. Highlight the biggest-sized gifts even if they are not the most expensive. Larger packages hold more excitement for children.

3. Dispose of all packaging, Santa's wrapping paper and any other signs that he has been in the house doing anything more than delivering gifts, eating cookies and maybe using the bathroom.

4. Rudolph's snack carrot image by timur1970 from Fotolia.com

   Make black boot marks on the carpet, a sure sign that Santa visited. Bite a carrot and leave it outside signifying the reindeer stopped for a snack.

5. Merry Christmas! child at christmas image by Katrina Miller from Fotolia.com

   Keep your camera handy for the morning wake up. Instantly transform from Santa Claus to Mommy and Daddy. Capture precious expressions as they show you all that Santa did for them.

Tips & Warnings

• If you do not have a chimney, make a tradition of hanging a large, old, key from an antiques store on a ribbon outside the front door for Santa to get in.

• Evenly stack toy piles for each sibling because much of what Santa brings is based on the child's belief about how good they have been. " Siblings often want things to be equal, but it's a losing battle," according to Emily Geizer. Let Christmas be a day that things can be equal for siblings.

• Discourage your child from putting something at the top of her Christmas list that Santa will not deliver.

References

• Child Perspective: 7 Tips to Minimize Sibling Rivalry
• Lone-Star Christmas Connection
• United States Conference of Catholic Bishops: Advent Season

Resources

• The History of Christmas
• Apple Seeds; "Twas the Night Before Christmas"; Clement Clarke Moore