Fortunately, I knew just what I wanted to say to my son about the legend of Santa Claus.

I told him that Santa was a real man who lived in the fourth century and was known for his kindness and generosity, especially to children. Nicholas was such a good person that he has inspired millions of people for thousands of years to continue bringing joy to children. How many other people in history have had such an impact?

I told my son that he’s now part of the secret society of people who safeguard Santa’s secret and are charged with continuing his legacy. He was excited to become part of this “adult” group, and now wants to make sure his little sister continues to believe in Santa as long as possible.

I’m sad to see this chapter of my son’s childhood coming to an end, but I’m glad he understands and magic that Santa inspires and is anxious to keep it alive for his sister.

(Please visit HubPages for more thoughts on how to tell your child about Santa Claus.)

Santa Letters
Personalized letters from Santa are a great way to keep your kids believing in Santa Claus. Many people think you need to purchase an expensive letter from a company specializing in this service if you’d like to share a Santa letter with your child. But you can save money – and still get a professional-looking letter – by creating your own personalized Santa letter at home. You can buy professional-quality printable Santa letter templates right here at Christmas Letter Tips for less than $5. These templates are saved as Microsoft Word documents, so you can use them for all the kids in your family and again in coming years.

Getting a personalized letter from Santa can definitely keep your child believing in Santa Claus, but the letter is even more effective when you add an official North Pole postmark. The US postal service in North Pole, Alaska, offers this free service every year. To get the North Pole postmark on your child’s letter, simply place your child’s Santa letter in a stamped envelope addressed to him or her and put THAT envelope inside another envelope. Then send them both to: North Pole Christmas Cancellation, Postmaster, 4141 Postmark Drive, Anchorage, AK 99530-99998. The post office will open the outer envelope, stamp the inner envelope with the North Pole postmark and send it back to your child. (Don’t forget the postage on the inner envelope!)

“I Caught Santa” Photos in Your Home
Another great way to keep your child believing in Santa Claus is to “catch” Santa delivering gifts on Christmas Eve. How do you do that? It’s easy with a service such as Capture The Magic. At Capture the Magic, you simply upload a photo of your living room, family room, or any other location, and then follow the simple process to place an image of Santa in your photo. In minutes, you’ll have a great-looking photo of Santa right in your own home! Your kids – and other family members, too – will be amazed.

Santa Videos
There are now a few different websites that help you create personalized videos in which Santa says your child’s name and/or shows a photo of him or her. Some of these services are free, while others charge a small fee. Disney offers a free video in which Santa checks to see if your child is on the Nice List and then shows his or her photo (which you have to upload, of course.) Portable North Pole.Tv is another one. Both of these are only available during the holiday season (November and December).

Tracking Santa
On Christmas Eve, you can track Santa Claus online with your child. NORAD Tracks Santa is a website operated by none other than the North American Aerospace Defense Command. Yes, the military. NORAD is a bi-national United States and Canadian organization charged with the missions of aerospace warning, aerospace control and maritime warning for North America. And since Santa flies through North American airspace on Christmas Eve, the military tracks his movements and reports on his whereabouts so children all over the world can know Santa will soon be at their home. This website opens each year on December 1.

With these high-tech options, you can help keep your child’s belief in Santa alive just a little longer. Eventually he or she will learn that Santa is a wonderful childhood fantasy, but until then, you can share these magical moments with your child.

You'd think that it would be easy to spot a big, fat guy in a bright red suit with clunky boots, but he somehow manages to sneak in and out of houses with the stealth of a ninja. He has evaded capture for centuries. Until now. Now you WILL be able to capture Santa when he comes to your house this year.

I have two kids and have personally tried this method to be sure it works. I didn’t actually practice skeet shooting in step 4, so perhaps my hand/eye coordination wasn’t as quick as it should have been, but I have tried the other steps and am proficient at the most important one, which is step #5. If you follow these steps in order, you are sure not to disappoint your kids.

1. Wear warm clothes. To catch Santa in the act, you’ll need to be outside so you can spot him as soon as his sleigh nears your neighborhood. So be sure to don a nice warm hat, jacket and boots because you never know what time Santa will arrive in your area. It could be a long night.

2. Set your camera to the fastest shutter speed possible. Because Santa has to make it all around the world in a single night, the guy drives a supercharged sleigh that is faster than any known technology, so you’ll need to be quick to catch him. If you don’t have a camera with a shutter speed of at least 1/3200 of a second, well, you better borrow one from your neighbor.

3. Grab a snack so you don’t get hungry. It’s going to be cold outside, so you better grab some tasty cookies and a Thermos of warm cocoa to keep you company. Make sure you have plenty of extras so you can share when Santa arrives. And grab a few carrots, too. The reindeer like them.

4. Be patient and watch the skies. The secret to catching Santa is patience and a good eye. You may want to practice some skeet shooting before attempting to capture Santa, as this will improve your hand/eye coordination and make it more likely you’ll be able to aim and focus your camera in time. But don’t practice skeet shooting on Christmas Eve when Santa is flying!! You wouldn’t want to accidentally knock him out with one of those clay pigeons.

5. Cheat. Now that you’ve spent all night watching the skies without any sign of Santa (I TOLD you he was quick), you’ll have to admit defeat and resort to a fun service called Capture the Magic to prove to your children that you were actually able to get a photo of him at your home. They can get you the photo you need. Many parents have resorted to the same techniques so they wouldn’t disappoint their children. After all, that’s what we parents do – we go out of our way to make our kids happy, even if we can’t really catch Santa.

Reprinted with permission from How to Catch Santa at Home on Squidoo.

If you need Christmas stationery, check out Zazzle for letterhead, cards, and other gifts. You might also like our printable Santa letter templates, such as the one shown here.

Dear [NAME],
Ho! Ho! Ho! It’s almost Christmas, and I’ve been making my list and checking it twice to see which little boys and girls have been naughty and which have been nice. I’m very happy to see that you’re on my list of nice [AGE]-year-old [GIRLS or BOYS].
I can’t believe you’re already so big that you’re in kindergarten this year! Your [PARENT OR OTHER PERSON] told me that you’re doing well in [TEACHER NAME’s] class. I hope you’re enjoying school and paying attention to your teacher. Education is very important.
The elves have been busy making lots of toys this year and they told me that you want a [TOY] for Christmas. I’ll do my best. My favorite part of Christmas is delivering toys to good children like you, and I always try to bring something you’ll like. But remember that the best part of Christmas is spending time with the people who love you. Toys are just an extra treat.

The reindeer are really looking forward to visiting [YOUR CITY] again this year. Don’t forget to leave out some carrots for them!

Love,

Two Santa’s Nice List Certificates to Choose From!

$4.99 for unlimited personal, noncommercial use.
After clicking Buy Now, please allow a few seconds for the PayPal checkout page to load.
Requires MS Word 97 or newer

$4.99 for unlimited personal, noncommercial use.
After clicking Buy Now, please allow a few seconds for the PayPal checkout page to load.
Requires MS Word 97 or newer

These professionally designed certificates will keep the magic of Santa alive for your kids – and also serve as a reminder for them to always be on their best behavior! Both designs are signed by Santa himself and are sealed with an official Santa Claus seal.

You can personalize and print these certificates out at home. Purchase separately or pair them with one of our printable Santa letters for a package sure to delight your child.

The Nice List certificates are saved as Microsoft Word documents, so all you have to do is open the file, highlight the text that says “Your child’s name here” and replace that with your child’s name. And because it’s a Word file, you can also change the size of your child’s name, the font face, or the color, if you wish.

NOTE: You will need MS Word 97 or newer to open the Nice List file. It will NOT work with Microsoft Works. If you don’t have Word, you can download a free trial of MS Office from the Microsoft site. Look for the Try It Free! text link under the Buy Now button.

Buy a single certificate at one low price and use it for all the kids in your family! The document is yours for unlimited personal, noncommercial use. By purchasing one of these certificates, you agree to use it for your personal use only and not to resell it.

Keep Santa’s magic alive with a Santa’s Nice List certificate. Order one today for the good children in your life!

For personal use only. By downloading this document, you are agreeing to use it for your personal, noncommercial use only. No resale allowed.