In article ,
Kevin Karplus wrote:


Certainly. We never lied to our son about Santa Claus, the Easter
Bunny, or the Tooth Fairy. We told him that these were made-up
characters, but that play-acting them was fun. We still enjoy the
customs without the trouble of having to disillusion him.

I've never understood why some people choose to lie to their kids
about popular myths---what is the advantage (tot he child or the
parent) in having a child really believe in Santa Claus or the Easter
Bunny? Yes, it is easy to fool little children, but why??

Because everyone -- including the kids -- enjoys it.

Going along with make-believe isn't lying, it's play. I know there are
people who report that they were angry when they found out that their
parents were "lying", but, frankly, I haven't met any of them, and I
often wonder what else may have been going on between them and their
parents. None of my three were upset -- and, in fact, enjoyed "playing
along" once they were old enough to no longer believe in magic. I
wasn't upset, nor were any of my 5 siblings.

Believing in magic is a normal stage of childhood development. At some
point, their understanding of the world changes, and they are able to
separate reality from make believe; exactly what age this ability
emerges varies. I could understand being upset if a parent insists that
the child must believe well past the age that this ability emerges, but
I don't know parents who insist on belief at ANY age. Once the kids
start asking, they either dodge the question ("What do YOU think?") or
tell the child the truth.

This year for the first time I didn't put "from Santa" on any of the
gifts, and my kids were actually slightly miffed: they are 22 and 19,
and haven't really believed in Santa Claus for a very long time!
--
Children won't care how much you know until they know how much you care