Who ruined Santa for you?

cotner

My neighbor was the one who told me.  I remember everything about that moment, the place, the smell, the music we were listening to.

Who ruined Santa for you? 

shopgirl78

I don't remember.  Probably my brother, he was always quicker to catch onto things.  I was very naive.  

Yodajo

My mom for putting the one, special, blue cookie back in the cookie tin (that I had left out the night before for Santa)!!

I was already suspicious and that sealed the deal for me.  It's funny that I still remember looking in that tin so clearly.

knmommy

Myself . I found my Christmas presents inu parents closet.  Then I got those gifts from"Santa". I was like in 3rd grade, it was the Barbie Spa.  My parents still did Santa until after I moved out.

 I don't think Nathan believes, but he won't admit it! 

littlemermaid

nobody ruined it for me, I figured it out by noticing that Santa's handwriting looked just like my mom's. I was 6 years old.

speckledfrog

MH and I were just talking about this.  I have no recollection. 

J&A2008

Rebekah!  I didn't realize Santa was lame and we had to be so over it by age 5.

happy_momma

No one!  For me it was more of a gradual realization over several years - I believed for a really long time mostly because I wanted to believe.  Plenty of people told me Santa wasn't real but I didn't believe them.  But eventually as I got older, logic won out.  But there was no one single moment for me.

babyfever8704

My dad - i lost a tooth and showed him, he said you really dont believe in that tooth fairy business anymore do you?  that ruined santa, the tooth fairy and the easter bunny all in one day 

Mominator

My 3rd grade teacher Mr. K. We had vocabulary assignments that we had to do every week and before Christmas he gave us a vocabulary list of Christmas words which included Santa Claus. I remember sitting in my bff's bedroom looking up words in the dictionary and when we looked up Santa Claus, it said "a fictional character", well, we then had to look up "fictional" and where shocked to say the least. There were a lot of ticked off parents calling the school the next day LOL

ghm

I don't remember anyone ever ruining it for me. I realized it on my own, and didn't let on to my parents for quite some time. Our neighbors ruined it for my brother and that pissed me off so bad. I felt awful for him. My sister and her friends always protected me in that way, I guess--they played along with it well after they figured out the truth, and I did the same for my brother. I got Santa presents until I left the house. It was fun. 

My kids better not ever be the turds that ruin it for someone else.  

superslug

happy_momma:

No one!  For me it was more of a gradual realization over several years - I believed for a really long time mostly because I wanted to believe.  Plenty of people told me Santa wasn't real but I didn't believe them.  But eventually as I got older, logic won out.  But there was no one single moment for me.

This.

superslug

littlemermaid:

nobody ruined it for me, I figured it out by noticing that Santa's handwriting looked just like my mom's. I was 6 years old.

This is why I disguise my handwriting!

DevonPow

My older sister....when I was pretty young, too. She caught our parents putting the gifts out Christmas Eve and immediately told me.

Rebekah1021

J&A2008:

Rebekah!  I didn't realize Santa was lame and we had to be so over it by age 5.

Ha! I never said he was lame.  My parents didn't do Santa - they were hippies I guess. She has older cousins who told her he doesn't exist and the hubby thinks she will be old enough next year to not do it. We are doing Santa this year, but she's doubting. 

karen6784

My Mom hid an Atari for me under our living room couch.  I found it and asked if I could play with it.  She was so mad that I found it!  I was 8 or 9 years old.  I had 2 younger sisters and I kept my mouth shut for them.  I didn't want to ruin their fun. 

ghm

Rebekah1021:

J&A2008:

Rebekah!  I didn't realize Santa was lame and we had to be so over it by age 5.

Ha! I never said he was lame.  My parents didn't do Santa - they were hippies I guess. She has older cousins who told her he doesn't exist and the hubby thinks she will be old enough next year to not do it. We are doing Santa this year, but she's doubting. 

I hope the mother of those cousins laid into them for ruining it for younger kids. What brats.  

Arnegard

My Mom always just told us that Santa is the spirit of the season.  He may not be a true person, but it is the spirit of the entire season.

I guess because of that, I never was traumatized by, "What there is no Santa?!"

ghm

Who REALLY is traumatized by finding out the truth? The truth that their parents did so much to give them magic in their childhood? That they spent money on gifts and gave the credit to a magical creature from the north pole? I'd venture to say that anyone traumatized by finding out that Santa was their parents just trying to give them some fun in their childhood is way overdramatic. Normal people just wouldn't be traumatized for life by it. 

CleoKitty

I don't remember. I honestly have no clue when I stopped believing. Early elementary, I suppose, but it was so long ago and since I don't remember it clearly was not a pivotal moment in my life, LOL. 

ghm:

Who REALLY is traumatized by finding out the truth? The truth that their parents did so much to give them magic in their childhood? That they spent money on gifts and gave the credit to a magical creature from the north pole? I'd venture to say that anyone traumatized by finding out that Santa was their parents just trying to give them some fun in their childhood is way overdramatic. Normal people just wouldn't be traumatized for life by it. 

I know, right? 

I occasionally hear about someone who said that they were so upset when they discovered that their parents had been LYING to them and that it adversely affected their relationship for a long time. I'm specifically thinking of one family I know who doesn't do Santa because that would be lying, the dad's parents lied to him about Santa when he was a kid and he still has trust issues because of it. I've heard other people say similar things. 

Anytime I hear that all I can think is dude, YOU'RE the one with issues. Seriously? Get over it. There is something messed up with you if you're still, as an adult, harboring resentment over Santa, the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny!

KRISTA555

I never believed.   My parents never really pushed the Santa thing.  They didn't say he wasn't real, but they didn't say he was real either.

It also helped that I had 3 much older siblings.

peekaboo716

I don't ever remember learning the "truth." I look at the ieda of Santa as a story that my parents told and acted out. Maybe that's why I didn't think anything of it when I found out? And Santa and the Easter Bunny came to my house until I was into my 20's!

Jessys_Girl

My dad.  two years in a row.

The first year, I woke up in the middle of the night to pee, and I caught him putting the presents under the tree.  He told me that Santa had delivered them but was in such a rush to get to the other houses that he asked my dad to arrange them under the tree for him.  I bought it.

The second year, my dad got TANKED ARSE DRUNK and passed out.  My mom (i guess) had tried to wake him to help put the presents under th tree, but he got beligerent with her and they had a massive arguement that woke both my sister and i up...that was the year we stopped believing in Santa.

Carol*Brady2

I saw a gift in a bag at the mall that showed up from Santa...so my Mom. I was only 5 but I never said a word to my parents--it was fun to pretend!

ali2005jason

I had stopped believing in Santa around 4th grade. I was really questioning if he was real. Well every Christmas we went out of town to visit family. This Christmas that I was questioning, my mom had me run back in the house to grab something last minute so I knew I was the last one out. When we returned the day after, there was a stereo sitting under the tree (what I really wanted) and a note. I knew it wasn't my mom's handwriting so I was confused. It basically said that "he" was sad that I wasn't believing anymore. I was convinced that he was still real. I'm not really sure when I stopped believing after that. I love the idea of this magical spirit of giving. I really hope my kids keep believing for a long time But if they don't, I know I'll be reading the story I found on pintrest to them.

Disneygeek77

I was in kindergarten.  Earlier in the day I watched a TV show or movie that scared me and I couldn't sleep.  I thought  that a bad guy was going to  sneak into our house and hurt us.  Finally I got up to talk to my parents and thye assured me that no one was going to sneak into our house.  The doors and windows were locked and the dogs would bark if anyone tried to break in.  I was ok for a brief moment and then said " But the dogs don't bark when Santa comes."  I remember my parents gave each other a look and then they explained that Santa wasn't real.  They made me promise that I wouldn't tell my younger siblings or else I would get in a lot of trouble and if I kept the secret I could help put out their presents and eat the cookies and milk.  I was perfectly fine with that. 

Let me just say that my story is much better than my youngest sister's story.  She was in first grade and on Christmas Eve went into my mom's room to help her wrap presents.  My mom set a few presents aside and said " Don't wrap these, they will be  from Santa."  My mom said my little sister's eyes welled up with tears and she said "Whaaatttt?"  Yeah she still likes ot hold that over my mom's head