Bah Humbug!
A British mom says she has no problem being labeled a shameless Scrooge for telling her three children that Santa Claus doesn’t exist.
Michelle Foulia, 49, who hails from Wales, said it felt incorrect to deceive her three children about St. Nick’s existence, particularly because she could never explain the inequality of gifts given out to different families on Dec. 25.
“Lying to my children never felt right, not even for ‘fun’,” Foulia — who’s an creator — told NeedToKnow.co.uk. “They never believed in Santa.”
“How do you explain to a toddler that Santa gave the neighbors’ kids latest phones and gave your kids a stuffed toy and sweets?” she asked.
Foulia added that the entire story surrounding Santa Claus gives her “the creeps.”
Not only does the Foulia family not consider in St. Nick, the clan don’t hassle putting up a Christmas tree or some other sort of festive decorations.
Foulia suffers from ADHD and says she finds such decor — along with the complete Yuletide season itself — overwhelming.
“Not only are you coping with visiting family and friends, but you are attempting to do your shopping with Christmas lights galore, Christmas music on repetition which is just unbearable, crowds, and noise and smells,” she complained. “It’s in every single place – you can’t escape it.”
“All this crazy spending, stress, food waste, conflict in families, debt, family fallouts, marriage breakdowns, all happening around Christmas due to a fantasy we’ve got one way or the other bought into,” the mom further moaned.
Foulia’s children, Mihalis, Vangelis, and Areti, at the moment are aged of their teens and early twenties, but don’t consider they missed out on a vital a part of childhood.
As a substitute of celebrating traditionally, the family has adopted their very own Dec. 25 rituals, spending quality time together without the stress of giving one another extravagant gifts.
“We noticed how much calmer all of us were, how we used the time to be more connected, to do more meaningful things together and to carve out that family time our way, not conforming to anyone’s standards but our own,” Foulia declared. “It has been splendidly peaceful, calm, and liberating.”
“We use the day as a time of connection, to reflect on the 12 months that has passed, to go for a walk if we feel prefer it, to debate plans for the longer term, to guage every thing and prepare for the brand new 12 months ahead,” she added.
“We are going to chat, laugh, perhaps play some games, perhaps not, it’s very relaxed with no expectations.”
Bah Humbug!
A British mom says she has no problem being labeled a shameless Scrooge for telling her three children that Santa Claus doesn’t exist.
Michelle Foulia, 49, who hails from Wales, said it felt incorrect to deceive her three children about St. Nick’s existence, particularly because she could never explain the inequality of gifts given out to different families on Dec. 25.
“Lying to my children never felt right, not even for ‘fun’,” Foulia — who’s an creator — told NeedToKnow.co.uk. “They never believed in Santa.”
“How do you explain to a toddler that Santa gave the neighbors’ kids latest phones and gave your kids a stuffed toy and sweets?” she asked.
Foulia added that the entire story surrounding Santa Claus gives her “the creeps.”
Not only does the Foulia family not consider in St. Nick, the clan don’t hassle putting up a Christmas tree or some other sort of festive decorations.
Foulia suffers from ADHD and says she finds such decor — along with the complete Yuletide season itself — overwhelming.
“Not only are you coping with visiting family and friends, but you are attempting to do your shopping with Christmas lights galore, Christmas music on repetition which is just unbearable, crowds, and noise and smells,” she complained. “It’s in every single place – you can’t escape it.”
“All this crazy spending, stress, food waste, conflict in families, debt, family fallouts, marriage breakdowns, all happening around Christmas due to a fantasy we’ve got one way or the other bought into,” the mom further moaned.
Foulia’s children, Mihalis, Vangelis, and Areti, at the moment are aged of their teens and early twenties, but don’t consider they missed out on a vital a part of childhood.
As a substitute of celebrating traditionally, the family has adopted their very own Dec. 25 rituals, spending quality time together without the stress of giving one another extravagant gifts.
“We noticed how much calmer all of us were, how we used the time to be more connected, to do more meaningful things together and to carve out that family time our way, not conforming to anyone’s standards but our own,” Foulia declared. “It has been splendidly peaceful, calm, and liberating.”
“We use the day as a time of connection, to reflect on the 12 months that has passed, to go for a walk if we feel prefer it, to debate plans for the longer term, to guage every thing and prepare for the brand new 12 months ahead,” she added.
“We are going to chat, laugh, perhaps play some games, perhaps not, it’s very relaxed with no expectations.”
