Santa Claus

A friend and I were recently talking about santa claus and our different experiences growing up.  I personally enjoy Santa and have tried to get Josiah equally excited about him when we see him at the mall. Josiah is scared of him and I think rightfully so.  What 2 year old isn't scared of some large man with a burley white beard and bright red outfit bellowing, "Ho Ho Ho".  Anyhow, I'm not exactly sure how this whole Santa thing is gonna go down in our home as Josiah and Grace grow up, but I like to hear people's Santa experiences from their childhood.  My friend sent this article by Mark Driscoll, "What we Tell Our Kids about Santa"  It's a good article, check it out. http://blog.marshillchurch.org/2010/12/13/what-we-tell-our-kids-about-santa-pastor-mark-for-the-washington-post/
I also heard of these great books put out by The Voice of the Martyrs.  They have books written by Cheryl Odden entitled,






St. Valentine more than cards and hearts,
St. Patrick, more than shamrocks and leprechauns
St. Nicholas more than reindeer and a red suit. 

These books tell the real story of these good people and it's written in easy to understand language for kids. They are great books that I plan on reading with my children when those holidays come around and they want to know why we celebrate Valentine's Day etc...