Young children around the world are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the magical Father Christmas this weekend – with many excited to see what presents the mythical bearded man will bring them this year.
And while we adults know the truth, no-one wants to be the one to break the news about where their presents really come from to their small children.
For one mum on Mumsnet though, the Christmas magic has been accidentally broken, after her five-year-old daughter happened to find the presents her mum bought that were supposed to be gifts from Santa.
The mum said she hadn’t wrapped the presents yet and is worried the blunder may have completely ruined Christmas for her daughter.
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She wrote: “I only have myself to blame but please help me salvage this.
“My daughter is five and very very excited for Christmas.
"We don’t have a lot of money, but this year I managed to get two playsets of a type of toy she likes and my plan was to build them up and they would be sitting out 'from Santa'.
“I picked them up this week, but I’ve been busy, so I hid them in a cupboard in a room she never goes in... but somehow curiosity overcame her and she’s found them! Santa should have been making them in his workhouse!
“How do I resolve this? Do I buy new gifts from Santa and say those ones she found are from me?
“It’s my own fault and I probably feel disproportionately sad about this, but I feel like I’ve spoilt the magic.”
Commenters on the post were quick to reassure the mum that Christmas isn’t ruined for her daughter, as they gave her tips on how to play off the situation.
One person said: “This is a good opportunity to reset that Santa brings stocking fillers and the rest of the presents are from parents. So yes, I’d say they’re from you and put something that you were going to give her as the surprise Santa present.”
While another added: “Tell her Father Christmas sent them to you to check they were the right ones and now he’s asked for them back so he can deliver them.”
And a third posted: “You’re just waiting for the elves to take them to Santa to deliver. Sounds implausible? I used to believe this nonsense when I was a kid! It was what our parents told us.”
What do you think? Let us know in the comments below.
