“Different families, different rules,” is my simple explanation when it comes to why our family’s rules are not the same as other families. A modified version of this saying applies to Christmas, “different families, different traditions.” To wrap or not to wrap Santa’s gifts falls squarely in the “different families, different traditions” category.
Santa never wrapped my gifts, he just left them in plain sight under our Christmas tree. I was an only child, so there was never confusion about which gifts were mine. When we were blessed with twin daughters, I envisioned Christmas morning chaos if Santa’s gifts were unwrapped and untagged under the tree. Plus, I love watching the frenzied excitement of a child ripping the ribbon and paper off a package. So we decided that all of Santa’s gifts would be wrapped in Santa’s special gift wrap reserved only for his use. After my girls’ first Christmas, I stocked up on Santa’s gift wrap at the Hallmark day after Christmas sale, grabbing enough to last for many Christmases.
One of my other favorite gift traditions is using Santa sacks. We purchased three Santa sacks from Pottery Barn Kids; two of them are monogrammed with each girl’s name and the third one is plain. Santa leaves his gifts for each girl in her sack, and the third sack contains shared family gifts like movies and games. Each Christmas Eve, we leave the empty Santa sacks next to his cookies and milk and the reindeer treats. He fills them with gifts and we keep them for him until the next Christmas.
Do you wrap Santa’s gifts?
Whether wrap or unwrap, the important thing is the one who gave you the gift and it’s always the thought that counts.
Santa’s gifts were always unwrapped at my house growing up, and I’ve carried on the tradition with my kids.