Couldn’t Father Christmas help?

If I left out mince pies and carrots on Christmas Eve the bloomin dog would have them snaffled before Santa got one foot out of his sleigh 🎅

mine pies
Not mine pies
Even the seagulls refused them 😲
They were made with my own GF pastry. Like concrete.

Mince pies

He’s definitely real. Last year we tracked him on the computer, and we could see which countries he was travelling over. We saw him over New Zealand where three of our grandchildren are living at the moment, and we tracked him across Africa. We went to bed then and he arrived sometime later at our other grandson’s house in Surrey. Oh yes, he’s definitely real

We track him here too. Log into NORAD even if there's not a child in sight. I also sometimes wave to the ISS when it passes over on a clear evening, started when Tim Peake was on it

Purplepixie

What no Santa????? So who has been coming into my bedroom on Christmas Eve? What the hell…………………(haha). thanks for the laugh! Tell the kids today that they are only getting 3 things for christmas……………………. Help my sides are hurting laughing!!!!

Well who has been coming into the bedroom?

Need to know basis, of course, to protect innocent GN's.

Alioop

If I left out mince pies and carrots on Christmas Eve the bloomin dog would have them snaffled before Santa got one foot out of his sleigh 🎅

Our dog (RIP) would have had the carrots, too - she was very partial to a raw carrot!

It's rather long to cut and paste
poets.org/poem/visit-st-nicholas

Here's an excerpt:

When, what to my wondering eyes should appear,
But a miniature sleigh, and eight tiny reindeer,
With a little old driver, so lively and quick,
I knew in a moment it must be St. Nick.
More rapid than eagles his coursers they came,
And he whistled, and shouted, and called them by name;
"Now, Dasher! now, Dancer! now, Prancer and Vixen!
On, Comet! on, Cupid! on, Donder and Blitzen!
To the top of the porch! to the top of the wall!
Now dash away! dash away! dash away all!"

That poem proves it then. FC must be real, or Clement Clarke Moore would not have had the inspiration to write it.

“They seem to expect an awful lot. They'll compare what they got, where they went and what they did with all their little greedy friends. Their parents will feel obliged to 'keep up with the Jones's', have a brilliant day (at any cost) - and will max out their credit cards and overdrafts to do it (then compare with their friends by posting online)”

I think the expectation is, in many cases, driven by the parents, with a view to the online posting. I bet the children would soon adapt to fewer gifts, like the ‘four things’ rule -

Something you want,
Something you need,
Something to wear,
Something to read.

And, I wonder how popular the Christmas Eve Boxes would be if Instagram etc did not exist?

Oh, for goodness sake! Instagram didn't exist when mine were little, but they still got a lot for Christmas. Much of it was from doting grandparents who didn't get a lot in their own childhoods, but we bought far more than they needed, too. I don't know that I would do it the same way if I were starting again (probably not), but it harmed nobody, it was not done to 'keep up' with anyone, and certainly wasn't for non-existent social media.

Talk about sucking the joy out of Christmas! (and yes, I know that a child can have a joyous time with a wooden spoon and an old pan, before someone points it out )

Who puts money into our bank account each month, then, if it isn’t FC?
I didn’t know Fanny Cornforth does that. I’ve missed out!!

We give different gifts in December. Experiences, lessons, holidays, charitable donations. We also observe older traditions apart from Santa.

Seems to cut expectations.

Talk about sucking the joy out of Christmas! (and yes, I know that a child can have a joyous time with a wooden spoon and an old pan, before someone points it out )

On DC's favourite pastime was emptying the Tupperware containers out of a bottom cupboard and playing with them.

Something you want, A diamond necklace
Something you need, A new car
Something to wear, A whole new wardrobe
Something to read. A new Kindle

Please, Father Christmas

Callistemon21 careful with that wardrobe request, he might think you mean the piece of furniture Otherwise a very reasonable list!

😂😂😂

It's not easy to get a large wooden wardrobe down the chimney.

The car can stay on the drive

And he could buy an electric sleigh so as to pay road tax just like everyone else.

Juliet27

^Who puts money into our bank account each month, then, if it isn’t FC?^
I didn’t know Fanny Cornforth does that. I’ve missed out!!

The penny’s dropped - FannyC moonlights in December as Father Christmas! Let’s count her posts next month and if there’s a drop off from the rest of the year - you’ve been rumbled, FannyCornforth! 🧑‍🎄

Every year when we were children father christmas would knock on our front door with a sack of presents... when we asked where Mum was my dad always said... she's having a bath..

I was thinking maybe we could all write to Santa with a slightly reduced gift list. But then I realised Santa probably won't get many of our letters this year due to postal strikes. Oh no! How will he know what I want? I may have to buy a few pressies for myself just in case he gets it wrong. 😊

Brilliant idea.

Omg he’s not real 😳 who’s been eating the mince pies and drinking the hot milk for the last 64 years then 🎅🤔

I'm with J bp1. Great idea. I am going to do that all my grandchildren are teenagers or over.

"I have a sign that hangs beneath the Christmas wreath on my front door which reads "This House Believes"

Some years ago an elderly neighbour did the same thing with a sign that read "We Believe in Santa" and her GC added "and he lives here" because their grandad had a full white beard. One morning her doorbell rang and she opened the door to find a long line of children (and a few Mums) asking to see Santa! She had to quickly explain that he was away at the North Pole getting ready for Christmas Eve and would be back in January but wouldn't be wearing his red suit then. I don't think she ever put the 'We Believe' sign out again!

No children in our household now but we still leave a small generous glass of brandy, a mince pie and a carrot out for Santa. All that's left in the morning are crumbs. Of course Santa is real!!

I always told our children about the legend of St Nicholas rather than the Disney style Santa, and several of the Santa figures that we display each year are dressed in green or 'man of the woods' clothes. Every Christmas Eve I read the poem 'Twas the Night Before Christmas' before I go to bed and I like to be in bed before midnight listening for jingling bells. I'm just a big kid at heart and I hope I always will be.

Getting back to the original theme of this topic, I think an advert or message from Santa could be quite a good idea. If the supermarkets can do it why not Santa! Perhaps he could ask children to donate toys they no longer want to charities. Young children would probably take more notice of what Santa said.

Sadly I do think many children will be reluctant to accept fewer or cheaper gifts than they usually get. They may think that the economic crisis is an 'adult' thing and doesn't directly relate to them and that Mum and Dad will find the money from somewhere.

Galaxy I've done a wordle on that r... and I am devastated. How could you