How to Explain Christmas Work to Kids with Santa
The hard part isn’t putting on the uniform, heading to the hospital, reporting for a shift, or catching an early flight on Christmas Day. It’s looking at your child and wondering how to explain that Mom or Dad won’t be home for Christmas.
But working on December 25 doesn’t have to mean your family misses Christmas together.
That’s exactly why we created the Santa Stops Twice™ tradition.
Santa still stops on December 25, wherever your children are, with a filled stocking and one special gift from their wish list. Then, on your chosen Family Christmas Day™, Santa stops again—bringing the rest of the Christmas magic and gifts when your whole family can be home to celebrate together.
Instead of Christmas becoming the day Mom or Dad had to miss, your child gets something magical to look forward to: Santa is coming twice.
Start with pride, not disappointment
Children take their emotional cues from us. If working Christmas Day is presented as something terrible happening to the family, children may begin to feel that Christmas has already been ruined.
Instead, help them understand why their parent’s work matters. A firefighter may be keeping families safe. A nurse or doctor may be caring for someone who is sick. A police officer or paramedic may be helping someone in an emergency. A service member may be serving away from home. Pilots, flight attendants, hotel employees, restaurant workers and so many others help keep our communities running—even on Christmas Day.
You can tell your child:
“Dad has an important job to do on Christmas Day, and Santa knows that. That’s why Santa has a special plan for our family this year. He’s going to stop twice!”
Now your child isn’t simply hearing that a parent will be missing Christmas.
They’re discovering that their family gets its own special Christmas tradition.
How Santa Stops Twice™ Works
One of the most important parts of the tradition is that children don’t have to lose the magic of December 25 just because a parent is working.
Santa still comes on Christmas Day.
When your child wakes up on December 25, Santa has stopped wherever they are and left a filled stocking and one special gift from their wish list.
It’s Santa’s way of saying, I didn’t forget you. Christmas Day is still special.
But Santa also understands something children sometimes need help understanding:
Christmas is about more than a date on the calendar. It’s about being together.
So Santa saves the rest of the Christmas magic for your family’s chosen Family Christmas Day before or after December 25—when the working parent can be home for the entire celebration.
Then Santa stops again.
The children wake up, the family gathers around the tree, presents are waiting, and Mom or Dad gets to experience Christmas morning with their children instead of hearing about it afterward.
That’s the magic behind Santa Stops Twice™.
Let your child help choose Family Christmas Day™
Instead of simply telling children when Christmas will happen, let them become part of the tradition.
After learning that Santa Stops Twice, your child can write back to Santa with their Christmas wish list and tell him which day your family will celebrate together.
Put Family Christmas Day™ on the calendar.
Count down to it.
Talk about what you’ll eat for breakfast, which pajamas everyone will wear, what movie you’ll watch, or what traditions you’ll do together.
Suddenly, the alternate date doesn’t feel like the day you had to move Christmas to.
It becomes their Family Christmas Day.
And there are now two exciting dates on the calendar.
Questions your child may ask
Will Santa still come on Christmas Day?
Absolutely.
You can tell them:
“Yes! Santa will still stop on December 25. He’ll bring your stocking and one special present from your wish list. Then he’ll come back on our Family Christmas Day when we’re all home together.”
This is an important part of the Santa Stops Twice tradition. Your child still gets to experience the excitement of knowing Santa visited on Christmas Day, while also looking forward to the bigger family celebration ahead.
Why does Santa come back?
Because Santa understands families.
He knows firefighters still respond to emergencies, nurses still care for patients, police officers still keep communities safe, service members may be away, and many other parents have jobs that don’t stop simply because the calendar says December 25.
And Santa knows something else:
The best part of Christmas is being together.
So for families who need another day, Santa finds another way.
Does that mean we get twice as many presents?
No—and this is an important distinction for parents.
Santa Stops Twice isn’t about doubling Christmas presents.
On December 25, Santa leaves a filled stocking and one special gift from the child’s wish list.
Then, on Family Christmas Day, Santa returns with the rest of the Christmas celebration and gifts.
The magic isn’t more presents.
The magic is getting to experience Christmas together.
Are you sad you have to work?
It’s okay to be truthful while still giving your child something positive to hold onto.
You might say:
“I wish I could be home with you on Christmas Day because I love celebrating with you. But I have an important job helping people, and I’m really proud of that. And I’m so excited because Santa knows our schedule and he’s coming back for our Family Christmas Day.”
Children can miss their parent and still feel proud of them.
And now they have something wonderful to anticipate.
Explain it differently depending on your child’s age
For preschoolers, keep the explanation simple:
“Mommy has to help people on Christmas Day, so Santa is going to stop twice! He’ll visit us on Christmas Day and then come back when Mommy is home for our Family Christmas Day.”
Elementary-age children may want to understand exactly how the tradition works. Show them the calendar. Explain what Santa will leave on December 25 and what will happen on Family Christmas Day. Let them write their letter to Santa and help choose your family’s special date.
Older children may understand the work schedule already. For them, Family Christmas Day can become less about explaining Santa and more about protecting something incredibly valuable: uninterrupted time together as a family.
Make Family Christmas Day™ feel like Christmas—not a backup plan
This may be the most important part.
Don’t treat Family Christmas Day like the Christmas you had to settle for because someone had to work.
Give it a name.
Put it on the calendar.
Count down to it.
Wear the Christmas pajamas. Make the pancakes. Turn on the Christmas music. Leave cookies for Santa. Wake up together. Gather around the tree.
Let it feel like your Christmas morning. Because it is!
Your children don’t need Christmas to happen exactly the way it happens in someone else’s house.
They need traditions they can count on and the people they love beside them.
Christmas isn’t about the date. It’s about being together.
Working Christmas Day doesn’t mean giving up Christmas morning with your children.
It doesn’t mean rushing through presents before a shift, watching them open everything over FaceTime, or trying to recreate the magic after everyone is exhausted.
Your family can create a different story.
Santa can still visit your children on December 25.
Your working parent can do the important job that needs to be done.
And when your whole family is finally home together, the Christmas magic can begin again.
Because Santa understands that every family is different.
And sometimes, Santa Stops Twice.™
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