A Christmas poll from Dad2twins.com
By 
dad2twins on Dec 19, 2007 in All is right with the world, Did I ask for your advice?, Random thoughts...
I was just wondering what you call him. For that matter is he two different people to you or one? Let me know.
Is he….
- Saint Nicholas (or any other spelling)
- Santa Claus
- Kris Kringle
- Father Christmas
- (_______Fill in the blank)
While I’m at it, do you celebrate Christmas on the 24th or the 25th. I will post poll results around Christmastime.
Editors note: In my house St. Nicholas and Santa are two different people. It’s a German thing. St. Nicholas Day is December 6th and Santa visits on Christmas (eve). Also, for my readers who do not celebrate Christmas, what holiday do you celebrate during this time of year?
| 2.9 |
We go with just “Santa” most of the time. I told Clare on December 6 that it was St. Nicholas’ Day, and she told me that St. Nick was Santa. I didn’t try to change her opinion because I didn’t want to answer questions and get into a sticky situation.
We celebrate with my family on Christmas Eve and my wife’s on Christmas Day. December 24 has always been a bigger deal with my Mom’s family–she’s Italian.
We celebrate Christmas on 12-25, and Santa is the guy who comes down our chimney.
PS - sent you a Borders card today
You can add Sinterklaas (St Nicholas in Dutch) to your list from here in Holland also on the 5th December (or is it 6th?), although I’ve never partaken in that celebration myself.
I trotted out some tripe about this scarey old guy a few weeks back
http://xbox4nappyrash.blogspot.com/2007/12/sinterklaas.html
How do the twins differentiate between their two “Santa’s”?
For us in Ireland it’s always been “Santa Claus” (Santa or Santy for short).
In our house he’s Santa, plain and simple. We celebrate on both the 24th and the 25th. Dinner is on the 24th and the 25th is presents followed by a family outing, such as ice skating.
We say Santa Claus now that we live in the US but while we lived in England as children we called him Father Christmas
He’s Santa at our house. We celebrate with my mom’s side of the family on Christmas Eve. Santa comes while we are out looking at Christmas lights. Then we celebrate at home with just the kids on Christmas morning after Santa comes to our house in the middle of the night. Surprisingly nobody has ever asked us why it takes Santa hours to come to our house after Grandma’s house when she only lives 20 minutes away.
Santa for me as well.
We celebrate Christmas the weekend before, the weekend of, and the weekend after. Just too many places to go and family to visit. This is definitely a busy time of year.
We call him Santa Claus. One present is opened on the 24th, and it is always pajamas. Only after the parents are awake, and ready to film the events, are stockings “opened.” Everyone gets a stocking, though the cats have to share. This is the first year ever without a dog stocking. Oh shit, Mom has a stocking in the box too. Fuck. Anyway, after stockings is breakfast. After breakfast is present time. We take turns, and it is somewhat orderly.
We also have St. Nicholas day. December 6? Good to know. I’m sure Mom was true to the date, however for me it is a changing, whenever-I-feel-like-it sort of thing. On St. Nicholas Day, the kids leave their shoes in front of the fireplace with their Christmas lists inside. In the morn, they wake to find that the elves have taken the lists to Santa, and filled their shoes with candy. One year I left my shoe out and the elves left me sushi. Long story….
Over 20 years, and you are still learning new things about me.
We call him Santa. On Christmas eve we open one gift, that is picked for us, and then the rest of the gifts are opened the next moring along with the gifts from Santa.
I am not sure why we do it this way other than it was the way my mother did it when I was young. In my father’s house (my mom wouldnt agree to this) they opened all the gifts from family and friends on Christmas eve and then from Santa the next morning.
On a related note I had lunch with a client the other day and she told me that Santa didn’t wrap presents at their house… he just put them in piles, by recipient.
I was in shock. How is that fun???? Sure.. it’s environmental…
The 25th.
It is all the same to me.
We celebrate Chanukah. However, we also help our non-Jewish friends celebrate Christmas. It’s like being invited to a bithday party, we know we’re not getting the gifts, we are happy to be there to celebrate the day!
And eat. We Jews love us some good food!
Santa Claus. Although Julenissen paid us a visit this year. We celebrate both days. Big dinner, gifts on Christmas Eve. Stockings Christmas morning and another big dinner that day.