Letters to Santa

I am against writing letters to Santa for the things you want.  I am for writing letters to Santa to thank him for whatever he may bring and to wish him safe travels and tell him how much he means to us.  When my sons were small, they didn’t write to Santa to ask him for toys.  They would write to ask him questions in hope of learning if he was really real and to show him how much he meant to them.  I was so proud of them for that.  I just never encouraged asking for gifts.  I encouraged being thankful for what you received and showing gratitude toward the giver for the thoughtfulness of the gift.  We used to practice our gift opening responses on the way to the grandparents’ houses at Christmas each year.  “What do you say if you already have it?” “Wow!, this is cool!  Thanks!”  “What do you say if you really don’t like it?” “Hey! Thanks a lot Grandpa!”  We talked about what we can do with the gifts: give them to neighbor kids, to a charity, sometimes we can return them for something different.  There are options, but the thing to remember is to be grateful and to show appreciation.  Christmas time is about family togetherness, kindness, giving and joy.