Santa Claus, Indiana: Where Christmas Happens Year Round

Santa Claus, IN is one of those rare places that makes it easy to celebrate the Christmas spirit on a daily basis, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year. The name of the town seems to say it all. But is the name deceiving? Read this article and you be the judge…

The Location

Santa Claus, Indiana is located in Spencer County, which is in the southwestern part of the state. According to the 2010 census, population was at 2,481. The town is between the Ohio River and Interstate 64.

The History

The town of Santa Claus has a rich history that goes back to the late 1840’s. Originally known as Santa Fe, (pronounced Santa Fee), however, the name was not accepted by the US Postal Service because there was already a city that had that name established with the USPS. For a period of time this place was known as the ‘nameless town’. But after several town meetings and much discussion, it was later decided that the name Santa Claus would be used.

Themed Attractions

Whether your preference is camping, museums, or fun in the sun, Santa Claus, IN can deliver. The town offers a variety of things to do for the entire family. Santa’s Candy Castle includes a candy theme and Santa’s workshop. Holiday World & Splashin’ Safari is renowned for the world’s longest water coasters. This park is divided into 4 sections where you will find celebrations for Christmas, Thanksgiving, the Fourth of July, and Halloween.

Santa Claus also offers the Santa Claus Museum, Santa’s Stables, and Christmas Lake Golf Course. Plus, it’s home to Lake Rudolph campground & RV Resort and Santa’s Lodge. There really is something for everyone!

More Than A Theme Park

Although many people think of Santa Claus as a great place to visit because of the themed attractions, others know the area is a perfect place to live. Most of the residents live in the gated community called Christmas Lake Village. The place includes 2,500 acres beautifully developed around 3 lakes: Lake Noel, Lake Holly, and of course, Christmas Lake. Street names conjure up thoughts of the holiday season. Holiday Village is another popular neighborhood in the area.

Christmas Lake Village are all named after the Christmas season. Many residents also live in Holiday Village, a subdivision on the north side of town.

Final Thoughts

If you want to enjoy a break from the hustle and bustle of rush hour traffic and your regular routines, why not visit Santa Claus, IN? It’s centrally located and rather easy to get to for most U.S. residents. In fact, it may be ‘on the way’ to your next destination.

Debbie Allen is a professional content writer that saves all her letters from Santa every year – they are favorite Christmas keepsakes!

Image courtesy of digitalart at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Christmas Shopping – The Fun, The Memories, & Christmas Letters

Every year my husband and I head out to the stores and malls to collect gifts for all of the people we love.  We plan on going during the weeks when the stores aren’t as crowded. We go out and have dinner alone together. We love to see how the store windows are decorated. I don’t understand how anyone can help but be caught up in the spirit of Christmas. It gives us time out of the house to reconnect during the sometimes hectic holiday season.

There are many people on our Christmas list. We try to find something special for each and every person on our list. That is easier for some than others. Let’s face it – there comes a time that children become difficult to buy for. At least that’s how it seems to me. Not only do the gifts they want get more expensive, I honestly have trouble picking out what they will actually want or use.

It doesn’t seem all that long ago when getting a letter from the North Pole was the highlight of my grandkid’s Christmas. Now they ask for things I have to Google just to find out what I’m looking for. I gave up on buying clothes for my older grandkids - I have been told that I don’t know what is in style. Besides socks I take them with me to buy their clothes. I remember going through this same thing with my own kids as they were growing up and with my parents when I ‘suddenly got smarter than them’. It happens to all of us as we age. It’s simply part of becoming a teenager.

Okay, back to shopping. When my husband and I are out shopping we like to recall memories about Christmases we have shared in the past. We laugh about how cool the kids thought they were the year they got an autographed picture of Santa. We have collected so many Christmas memories together that we never run out of things to talk about while we shop. As we talk we collect more and more bags. Every once in awhile we will run across something that we just know someone special will love. Those are the gifts I look forward to giving the most.

We still buy toys for the youngest children. John and I love going to the toy store. We revert back to children as soon as we walk in the door. We have no trouble finding a gift from Santa for every kid in our life. Sometimes I have to remind John to behave himself. I think we try out about every toy in the store. Little kids are so easy and fun to shop for. Every year we go overboard at the toy store - I guess we just can help ourselves.

We try our best every year to get what is in our kids' letters to Santa. we have never had a Christmas where the little kids were unhappy with what they got. I like it when they open up things they weren’t expecting. I enjoy the surprised look on their faces. We try our best to give all the children in our lives happy Christmas memories to carry with them for the rest of their lives.

         

       

Christmas Snow Blown In From The North Pole

The first snow of the year just happen to fall on the same day my kids received their letters from Santa. When we woke that morning we turned on the T. V. and sure enough school was going to be out that day. Like all schoolchildren my kids were overjoyed. There just something special about a day when school gets canceled due to snow. They went straight to the closet and started to pull out their snow gear. It was only two weeks until Christmas and that’s all they could talk about.

They had all been checking the mailbox everyday waiting to get a letter back from Santa. My son Johnny said that he thought it had been forever since he had sent off his letter to Santa.  In reality it had only been a week or two. Thank goodness it seemed like the snow was giving them something else to think about that day. I made them come in and have warm up breaks. No one protested because they knew that hot chocolate and cookies were waiting for them inside.

At lunch time them came in and had chicken noodle soup and grilled cheese sandwiches. The conversation turned once again to their letters. My daughter said that maybe a letter from the North Pole brought all the snow with it. We all laughed and noticed that the snow was still falling outside. The snow had really begun to pile up everywhere. My husband John made a fire and the kids gathered around close to warm up. Once they had warmed up they went right back to playing in the snow.

I heard the front door open and a troop of snow boots running across the room. They were all yelling and holding in their hand a letter from Santa. They had seen the mailman coming and met him at the mailbox. There was a letter to each of them from Santa. My youngest, Derek, said he thought the letters really brought the snow with them from the North Pole. He called his Grandma to tell her all about the letters and the snow. My mom told him she was glad he could get a letter back from Santa.  

The snow kept right on falling and our city shut down. Every morning the kids waited to hear that school was canceled. The kids said they thought it was just a gift from Santa for being so good all year. School was canceled for the rest of the week. We spent the time just hanging out together and playing in the snow. There was some Christmas magic in that snow and just maybe it had been sent from the North Pole.

Christmas Eve – The Fun & The Struggle To Fit Everything In

Since I’m now a grandma, I have changed my Christmas Eve routine a little. Now the kids have to come to my house – funny how it’s true what they say about history repeating itself and all that! Well anyway, my family does have some true Christmas traditions and many of them revolve around Christmas Eve. Let me take you back in time – Let’s say about 20 years ago when my kids were all little and I was trying desperately to keep them happy and make Christmas wonderful for them.

20 Years Ago:

Christmas Eve is always a busy day for our family. After we finish our breakfast we start wrapping gifts for all the people we plan on seeing that day. It amuses me to watch how much care the kids put into their work. Our living room becomes a maze of bright shiny packages as we wrap. My daughter gets the job of putting her cousins' nice certificates from Santa in envelopes. They live in Canada. She likes decorating the envelopes with glitter and lace. We all help to load the van and clean up the scraps of paper and ribbon.

Our first stop is to my mother-in-law’s house. It is nice to have a chance to see all of my husband’s family. They all play music so there is always a cheerful Christmas melody filling the air. The kids bounce around waiting to open the presents. Christmas Eve with my husband’s family is always such a festive time. We finally let the kids dig into the presents scattered under the tree. I love to watch the excitement on the faces of the kids as they rip through the wrapping paper. There is always a gift from Santa for each of the kids hidden under the tree somewhere.

By the time we arrive to my Mom’s the sun has already set. When the door opens we are greeted by joyful laughter. The dining room table is covered with the most scrumptious food. We greet everyone and many warm hugs are exchanged. We all make plates and find a place to sit and talk. It’s nice to see my kids spending time with all of their cousins. My mom is always the one to hand out the Christmas gifts with my Dad as her helper. She is the best at buying the perfect gift, how she knows what a picky fourteen year old will like I will never know. My mom sends the kids home with reindeer food from Santa.

By the time we head home it is pretty late at night. We like to take a short drive to look around at the Christmas lights. It gives us a chance to calm down from all the excitement of the day. There are certain houses that the kids want to see every year. My sons Johnny and Derek insist on visiting the subdivision on the other end of town that has real reindeer as part of the decoration. Who could blame them? Angela likes the house with angels and music. Our goal is to try to drive around until the kids are tired – that doesn’t happen, after all, Santa Claus comes tonight!

Once we get back home we put out a plate of cookies for Santa along with the kids letter to Santa. The kids all put on their new Christmas pajamas. After awhile the kids get settled in and fall asleep. My husband and I like to sit together in the quiet for awhile surrounded by the glow of the Christmas tree lights. And then Santa goes to work!

Back To Today:

Do I miss those days? Well you know, as I write about it, I do sort of wish I could spend just one day with my kids as they were as little kids – just one day. But there really is something to be said about every age. Now that I am over 50 I can honestly say that it’s a great age to be. My Christmas holidays are less stressful – I get to enjoy my kids and grandkids without the worries that I used to have associated with the holidays. I see everyone on Christmas Eve and usually on Christmas Day too. Fortunately all of my family lives very close to me.

What about you and your Christmases – are they better now than they used to be? Have you carried on family traditions? Why or why not?