When to Reveal the Truth About the Tooth fairy...santa

What are you talking about Santa is real. He is a real person not a cartoon character. When one retires another takes over.but if you stop believing in him he stops bringing you presents. Toothfairy is a cartoon character like the easter bunny.

I have never told my kids and I won't.
Kids will figure it out. I always say, What do you believe. Then say I believe.
I also tell them if they don't believe in Santa he won't come. My kids are 10, 13, 16 and 22.
We go to the NORAD website every Christmas eve. We set cookies out, for SAnta and a carrot for the EB.
THey go to church every Sunday so the secular Rabbit is just that, he has nothing to do with the resurrection, he brings colored eggs and a small gift.
My husband and I do Santa for each other and when he was deployed my 11 yo daughter did it, 3 years in a row.

Look at my profile photo. I still believe in Santa and I still believe in the magic of Christmas.

I told my kids when they quit believing in Santa, then Santa wouldn't bring them presents any more. The same with the Tooth Fairy and the Easter Bunny.

We also believe the most important part of Easter has nothing to do with the Easter Bunny. At our home, the Easter Bunny comes on Saturday out of respect for Christ and the sacrifice He made for us.

Don't want to lie to your kids? Have you ever had one of your kids answer the phone and tell you that so&so was on the phone and you said tell her I'm not home? You just showed your child that lieing is ok. Ever stay home from work and called in sick when you weren't? You just showed your child that lieing was ok. Ever told a friend that just bought a new dress or got a new hair do and told them they really looked nice when they really looked bad? You just told/showed your child that lieing was ok.

I could go on, but you get the message. It really is OK to bring joy and magic to a child's life with the legend of Santa and the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy.

BTW, if you have doubts about Santa, look up on the internet the newpaper article, "Yes Virginia, there is a Santa."

Good luck to you and yours.

October 19th and ALREADY the Santa vs. the "I'm not going to lie to my kids" is going on....Yikes. My daughter is 18, Santa comes here for sure still (wink). She's a smart kid, trusts and believes me and has known the "truth" for 12 years but it is FUN! She is the oldest kid in the family and has had fun going along for the other cousins that vary in age and even 13 years younger. I'm a great mom and have managed to pull off Santa AND an amazingly trusting/honest/open/giving relationship with my only daughter (very easy to do, they are not mutually exclusive). Children are little for such a short period of time that it is fun for all of us.

It's a natural cycle.
First you believe in Santa Claus.
Then you don't believe in Santa Claus.
Then you become Santa Claus.
Finally you look like Santa Claus (or Mrs Santa).

Since when has facts had anything to do with belief?
Santa Claus - the spirit of giving.
Tooth Fairy - the magic of growing (shedding baby teeth and maturing).
Easter Bunny and eggs - New life in the spring
It's fun to think of Jack Frost painting leaves with fall colors and creating feathery frost patterns on windows.
We KNOW he doesn't exist.
It's water and weather/temperature and the amount of daylight (or lack of it) and chlorophyll dying and leaving colors that were always there but were not seen before now.
But it's wonderfully creative to make an explanation from fancy.
People always have (and always will) have anthropomorphic personifications in one form or another.
Being strictly literal/scientific all the time is no fun at all!

You know, I've been wondering this myself, but I love that Margie's kids are all older and she's never told them, not even the 22 year old ;)

So my kids are still little and I haven't had to deal with this yet, but here's how my mom handled it. She told us that Santa and the tooth fairy only came to those who believed. I was the oldest of three so she didn't want me to ruin it for my sisters. We all didn't want to miss out on Santa so we still believed. Even before we had kids my sisters and I would leave out cookies for Santa and even purchased Santa gifts for my parents. It makes it loads of fun for everyone! This way your daughter can still believe for as long as she wants and the little ones won't be disappointed.

I don't believe my parents ever told me that the tooth fairy,easter bunny wasn't true. I kind of figured that one out myself. As far as Santa, I told my mother that I know they put out the santa presents. But, I told her that I still want her to write "from Santa" on the presents. I believe, and that is all that matters. I still, as an adult want the " from santa " presents.. Who wouldn't?

I have personally never told my children that any ficticious characters are true because it isn't true. I know it's tradition so often for our kids to believe in these things, but I don't know why, or where it started.
I don't know the answer to telling a child something that they believe in is not true (such as this), but I personally would tell the other children as well, when you break it to your 9 year old.
(I can already see the rotten tomatoes being thrown at me!)
It sounds like you aren't enjoying the "fun" of it anyway, because of promising to be open with her.
Please don't think I am one to throw stones-I guess that happens on this site sometimes. This is just my feelings, and I'm expressing just that. I am not trying to be mean spirited at all.

My schoolmates leaked the news to me when I was 6— I confronted my mom and cried when she gently comforted me and confirmed my fears. I knew the truth, but at that age, for me, it was tough to accept it.
My first-born would occasionally raise the question, tell me what his friends were saying, etc. and I would ask what he thought and if he pushed I'd say— you let me know when you're ready for me to answer. So, now 9, he confronted me one morning in the bathroom while brushing teeth and I asked if he was sure he wanted me to be honest and he clearly did. He was ready but still a little afraid of the answer— MOSTLY because he was afraid that would end getting presents!! I reassured him that he would still get presents no matter what. He was most incredulous that we, his parents, were the ones who bought him all those gifts. Talk about sweet and heartwarming! There are usually about 4 gifts under the tree for each of my 2 boys, plus stockings with little trinkets and candy. He then came back to ask about the Easter bunny and tooth fairy.... just to be sure. He told me he did not want to spoil the fun for his 6 yr. old brother and is happy to be in on the secret with us parents. I told him that I will always believe in Santa Claus and I hope he does too. We'll see how long little brother believes— I feel pretty sure he's more skeptical than big brother, so this may be our last year? Who knows? I'm not interested in rushing it!!

I'm sure your daughter doesn't believe at 9. At this age she has heard things at school. A little boy told me about Santa at 8 and then I caught my parents at 9 but they didn't see me. At 11 my mother said you know you don't believe in Santa. I said no but I thougth if I told you I wouldn't get presents. The Easter Bunny was short lived and I caught the tooth fairy. I'm sure she doesn't beleive she is just trying to feel you out to see the consequencies of not believing.

we told our kids from the begining. We want them to know the real reasons we celebrate christmas and easter and also we don't want to lie to our kids. We feel that if we lie about that, then how are they going to trust us with other stuff? Same goes for the tooth fairy. It's still fun for them because they get to wake up with a suprise under their pillow

I like M2KCK's answer~

When my oldest was 10 he found his baby tooth that supposedly the tooth Fairy had taken. He held it up and said the Tooth Fairy isn't real, is she? What about Santa? He had already had a ton of doubts... kids start talking at school. It was such a direct and knowing question that I couldn't lie. Now my 8 year old is really starting to question Santa. I just might be truthful. I can't even imagine them being 22 and not knowing or still pretending! Pretending there is a Santa can be fun but there was a time I couldn't afford much and it was hard coming up with more lies to explain why Santa brought more presents to some kids and not others! Sometimes I think maybe I should have just been truthful. All my children have really been scared of Santa and wouldn’t go near him at the mall and are were a little freaked out about him coming into our house even if it is to bring presents. I guess I'm having a hard time being dishonest too... especially as they get older!