From December to November, both the idea of Santa and the fate of a child's Christmas list can be enough to make them be on their best behavior. I can definitely say that I have fallen victim to using the "Santa's watching" or "If you don't behave Santa won't bring you any good presents" excuse more than once when trying to get children I'm babysitting to behave. But rather one of the many tactics adults use to settle children down we should instead recognize the idea that we're drilling in children's heads. Children are raised with the belief that in order to get good presents on Christmas they must remain on their best behavior and only the best children receive the best gifts. This idea plays a major role in the purchasing of expensive gifts for children marked "from Santa." Modern youth grew up surrounded by technology, iPhones, iPads, laptops, gaming systems, etc. so they're bound to be placed on their Christmas lists.
The older I've gotten the more involved I've become in the Christmas shopping for my family, especially my younger sibling. I can see the stress that it puts on my entire family, the determination of my parents to provide us with some if not all of the desired gifts on our Christmas lists. Through this process, I've also gained an insight into others' Christmases and the shared struggle between families when it comes to providing enough of their children's desired gifts within their means.
When it comes to expensive gifts such as iPads, not every family is able to provide these gifts. When children wake up on Christmas morning and see that they didn't receive the gifts on their list it leads them to believe that they weren't good enough to deserve such a gift and that their friends are seen as better in Santa's eyes. This can be debilitating to a child's confidence and leads parents to feel so much more guilty for not being able to fit expensive gifts into their budget. That is why it's so important for parents to start taking credit for their children's more expensive gifts.
If you bought the iPad, take credit for it, and allow Santa to take credit for the smaller gifts and toys.
