Yes, until I was about 7, when I realised that clearly my parents were doing it all.
I believed whole-heartedly until I was about 8, and gradually my skepticism got the better of me by the time I was 10.
I was a very fanciful child. I believed in vampires, fairies, and all sorts of other stuff until I was well into my teens.
So, as I said, I teach 7th grade and I believe there are a few kids over the last years that might believe in him.
Is this odd? I think it is. I flat out joke about it in class every year. Don’t think I’ve spoiled it for anyone yet.
I’m 47 and I believe in Santa Claus. But its a metaphor.
7th grade? I remember believing in him when I was really little, but I think by first grade I had stopped (I think there was a period where I didn’t believe in him, but didn’t want me parents to know in the mistakend belief that the toys would stop coming). I know that by first grade I was searching the house for my gifts which would imply that I knew santa wasn’t real.
I distinctly remember one Christmas—I don’t remember how old I was at the time—when I thought it was just my parents, but I wasn’t sure, and I was worried, because I figured that was something I needed to know for sure one way or the other before I grew up and had kids of my own.
(This would have been way before the SNL sketch.)
I bought it completely when I was a little kid. One of my earlier memories ( confirmed by people who were adults at the time ) is of getting up after midnight, walking out to where the adults were chatting and wrapping presents at the last minute, and complaining to them that if they didn’t all go to bed and get some sleep Santa would never come.
Yes, I certainly did, white middle class suburbia. In many ways, I still do. I think I figured it out about age 7 or 8, and I remember my Mom reading, “Yes, Virginia There is a Santa Claus to me” She read it to me out of a coffee table book: Leaves of Gold.
I still have the book, it is a little worse for wear, but I treasure it.
I did believe in Santa when I was very young, but once I stopped believing, I found it more profitable not to let my parents know.
I still remember putting my father on the spot when I was about 4 years old. Our house at that time had no fireplace or chimney, and as a Christmas decoration we had a cardboard fireplace. Dad said that was where Santa would come, and I asked about the lack of a hole in the ceiling.
I cannot remember ever believing in Santa; I can remember being about 4 or 5 and thinking that the labels looked an awful lot like my mom’s writing. My folks never really tried to get us to believe and it was clearly a ‘fun’ thing.
My kids are far more enthused about Santa than I ever was, though I am not a Santa fan and have never encouraged belief. I am somewhat befuddled by this; they enjoy it so much that I hate to spoil it, but it makes me uncomfortable. When my older girl was 8, it was obvious that she sort of wanted to believe because it was fun, but really she knew. DangerDad sat her down for the ‘grownup’ talk and did it very well. She enjoys being in on the story.
The younger one still believes and I’m still conflicted about it. Last year she was the one who came up with the plan to ask Santa for the expensive gift, so that we wouldn’t have to pay for it.
An example of my kids’ love of Santa: when my oldest was barely two, she was making ‘birthday cakes for Santa.’ I had never told her about Santa. It was August. She did it anyway, I have no idea how. After that, it was Santa-love.
Last year DangerKid’s best friend asked her if she believed in Santa. (They were both 8.) Carefully, she answered ‘yes,’ not wanting to spoil anything in case her friend still believed. ‘Do you?’ DK asked–and the friend (who forced her mom to confess when she was 5 and promptly threw a screaming fit when she heard the truth) carefully answered ‘yes,’ so as not to hurt her feelings! That cracked me up.
But I think that is the whole point, my mum was like this too, but the point was not whether or not Santa is real, the point is is just more FUN if you believe.
It’s like if you go to a movie and you know darn well the plot could never happen, but you allow yourself to say “OK I’ll believe for 2 hours, 'cause it’s more fun to believe.”
I have one colleague who is shocked that I won’t have Santa for our little Mahalothette.
I was shocked by her shock.
Anyone else shocked or surprised when you hear someone isn’t having Santa? It’s not for religious reasons and we don’t believe Santa is evil. We just don’t “have it”.
???
Nope. My mother made it very clear to us that there was no Santa. She thought that we should be thankful to those that gave us presents. She’s also something of a religious zealot so I have no doubt that that played a role as well.
Yes, but my mom really expected us to believe. I’m not kidding when I say that expressing disbelief in Santa = no presents in my house (at least, back in the day it did).
When Mrs. Homie and I first discussed having kids, I mentioned to her that I wanted to take a less-is-more attitude toward Santa: we would explain the myth, but that it was only a myth, yada yada. Mrs. Homie had a hissy fit on the spot. She said the she expected me to teach our hypothetical kids that Santa was real and to keep up the charade until they figured it out on their own.
We don’t have kids (but not because of the Santa thing!).
Why did she get so upset? Why is it important to her?
No, never. Christmas was all about Jesus for my family, although my parents did explain the theory of Santa and that some kids believed it when I started school.
One of my best friends growing up believed until she was 11, because ‘my mom and dad would not lie to me’. When she realized they had been her whole life, she had a small nervous breakdown. That whole sorry situation was enough to make me decide I would never lie to my (future) kids about anything, even for fun.
I believed until my eldest sister, who is an unhappy soul, and loves to make others miserable, told me it was just our mother. Sucked all the joy out of it. I happily told mine about Santa, and even though they are now teens, I’ve told them if they say they don’t believe in Santa, there’s no stuff in their stockings. They go along with the charade willingly, and have a lot of fun. Life is serious. Christmas should be fun.
I’m not shocked or surprised, but then, I didn’t believe in Santa, but in other magical creatures. 
Santa was a fake, Magi rule!
I don’t even really remember a Christmas when I completely believed, but I must have, because I do remember a Christmas when I was worldly and realistic during the day, but at night I would hear noises (normal, winter noises like ice creaking on the roof) and think “wait, maybe there is a Santa!” I think I was more excited about believing in flying reindeer than anything else.
My parents presented Santa like an exercise in critical thinking … they never came out and said what was going on, but would ask leading questions to get us to think about the various possibilities… there is a real Santa, there is no real Santa, Santa is the Christmas spirit in your heart, etc. And we still act as if there is a Santa - I have only good memories of Santa, I don’t remember ever feeling deceived, or suckered, or anything like that.