As a parent, one of the most challenging aspects is hosting mythological creatures for your child.

Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny, the Tooth Fairy and the Three Kings can all come with extra work.

But once you are prepared to host them at your place without your child seeing them, it becomes a cinch!

Here are some ways that you can be prepared for when Santa Claus arrives at your place this year!

Don’t Give Out Santa’s Phone Number!

My children have some questions about Santa.

So, when I answer their questions, they ask me how I know.

And I tell them that when you become a parent, you get to have the phone number to Santa.

Then you get to chat with Santa and get to know him a bit and keep in touch.

The one year, my children were actually misbehaving pretty bad.

Santa “gave me a call” while the kids were elsewhere and informed me that he had seen their misbehavior.

He had said that he was not coming now on Christmas, but if they could shape up their behavior within a week, then he would arrive.

The kids did do much better and Santa did eventually come.

Having a close connection with Santa helps strengthen the mythological creature relationship.

Since the kids know that I have Santa’s phone number, they, too, feel a bit closer to him, as well.

The only problem is that the kids want to talk to Santa.

But they know the rule!

Only a parent can have Santa’s phone number, and the parent is never to tell it to their child!

And when I get a “why, mommy?”

I say that, otherwise, Santa would be getting numerous calls from kids all over the world and he is too busy preparing toys and his sleigh to take that many calls!

So, let your child know that you can reach Santa easily, if need be, but that you can never give out his phone number directly!

Prepare a Space for Santa!

Make certain that you find a secret space in or around your home for Santa.

As you may know, Santa cannot bring everything by sleigh!

Nowadays, he takes advantage of places like Amazon to get toys shipped all over the world!

Sometimes, he may send you a few toys for your child ahead of time.

And maybe he asks you to store them for him until he arrives on Christmas Eve.

No problem, Santa!

When those packages arrive, make certain that you have a secret place to store them.

Santa and his elves also need a place to wrap them once he does arrive.

So, make certain that you have tape, scissors, and wrapping paper ready in order to help him out.

The last thing Santa needs is to run around your house looking for wrapping supplies if his elves happen to forget those things!

And I know one elf who does tend to forget to bring the necessities…

(Ahem!) His name is Herbert!

Help Santa Out When You Can!

It’s really wonderful that Santa goes out of his way to come to your house.

So, if he ships presents ahead of time, you can give him a hand by wrapping them ahead of time.

Santa does not mind!

If you get caught in the act, make certain to let your child know that you are just helping Santa out.

Just because a parent is not an elf doesn’t mean that the parent cannot help Santa!

Santa is just one man with millions of houses to visit in one night and he needs all of the help that he can get!

So, don’t be too caught off guard if you get caught wrapping presents!

Be upfront with your child about the nature of the Santa situation.

I am certain that your child will understand!

Plus, the more wrapping you can get done ahead of time, the easier it will be on Santa to place those presents under the tree!

Get on the Delay List!

Every year, I remind my children that we are on Santa’s Delay List.

The Delay List is a special list that parents can volunteer to put their families on.

When a family is on a Delay List, Santa knows that it is okay to skip their house on Christmas, if Santa gets behind on his deliveries that night.

It still means, though, that Santa will arrive on a different night!

At our house, sometimes Santa arrives an entire week later!

We volunteer to be on the Delay List because Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are always so hectic and I really like to be able to relax and enjoy watching my children open their presents.

If Santa comes on a different day, we are okay with that because that just means that we can enjoy our Santa experience more.

We don’t have to quickly open presents and then run to another relative’s house.

And it also gives me more time to prepare for Santa’s arrival.

My kids know that there are some perks to being on the Delay List.

Santa sees that we have more patience and thoughtfulness by thinking about Santa first.

So, he always leaves a little something extra out on the counter for volunteering.

Give Santa or one of his elves a call and see if you, too, can have your family be on the Delay List so that Christmas Eve and Christmas Day are not so hectic for you or for Santa!

Get to Bed Early!

I can’t stress this more!

I know that your child is excited about Santa coming!

But do what you can to get your child to bed early the night that Santa comes!

Watch that you, yourself, do not fall asleep!

You need to stay up incase Santa needs a little help!

Sometimes, my children want to know why I am not going to sleep.

I remind them that, sometimes, Santa needs help and likes when a parent waits for him to arrive.

Santa may need help bringing large gifts through the door or carrying packages across the room.

You also have to remind your child that if they do not go to sleep, Santa will have to skip over your place.

Be sure to keep your child’s same bedtime routine.

But don’t forget to side-track a bit and set out the cookies and the milk!

Santa will need a little pick-me-up at 2am!

You Are Ready!

Once you have done all of the above…

You are ready for Santa to arrive!

Remember to keep Santa’s phone number under wraps!

Create a special place for Santa to store and wrap extra presents.

Make certain to help Santa wrap presents, if need be!

Consider placing your family on the Delay List in order to give Santa a little extra time to get ready.

Finally, make certain that your child gets to bed early the night of Santa’s arrival!

As a parent, there is so much to do to get ready for the holidays!

But, with these tips, you can master Santa’s visit and totally enjoy hosting him at your place!

Hope your holiday season is a merry one!

Are there some other special ways that you prepare for Santa’s arrival?

Feel free to share in the Comments Section below!