Lauren from New York

“Unfortunately, my daughter believes in Santa Claus,” says Lauren, a mother of a four year old girl and a one year old boy from New York. “How could she not? He’s everywhere! Of course, the minute she asks me what I think, I will tell her the truth. Santa is not real.

“Even though I was raised in a Jewish household, I grew up celebrating Christmas and Easter just like the rest of my friends. My mother had a difficult start to her life, abandoned as a child, and was always trying to make up for her misfortunes by over-indulging her four children. So my sisters, brother and I grew up celebrating Christmas and believing in Santa Claus in the most over-the-top, commercial way possible.

“Today, the over-indulgence continues with mom stacking piles of presents for her grandchildren and telling them these gifts are from Santa. I can tell my daughter is already a little confused about Santa Claus thanks to the conflicting messages her Grandmother and I are sending her. Our home is devoid of any Christmas decorations but Grandma’s house is reminiscent of the North Pole. In fact, she’ll use any and every excuse to decorate and buy the grandchildren gifts, from Easter to birthdays to Fourth of July, continuously spoiling them throughout the year.

“I think the holidays are the worst. My daughter rips through the pile of gifts on Christmas morning, not taking the time to enjoy and appreciate each one individually. The whole experience is just sending the wrong message in my opinion. I’d like to tell her Santa is not real and that he doesn’t go around leaving gifts under trees on Christmas Eve. At least that will be one less 'person' my mother will have to pretend she is, somewhat reducing the wasteful spending during the holidays.

“I told my mom over and over again that I don’t approve of my children being showered with presents since it completely spoils the meaning of gift-giving for them. My husband and I try to donate these unused toys to charities and toy drives as much as possible, which in turn makes us look like the Grinches to my daughter. At the very least, I feel like we’re taking the opportunity to teach her to share with children who are not as lucky as she is and that in itself is a good lesson.”