As a horror fan, I’m constantly trying to figure out how to bring horror to the holidays. Christmas isn’t exactly my favorite time of year—for various reasons, including the stress—but with two young kids, I try to find something to enjoy about the season.
This year, I decided to enjoy Krampus.
And yes, it totally helps that the movie is coming out today.
Oh, it looks awesome and terrible all at the same time. I can’t wait!
I’ve even started using Krampus to threaten my boys to behave this holiday season. Now, before you find that upsetting or mean, it’s not any different than telling them that Santa isn’t coming—which can be just as detrimental. The vast majority of parents do that to keep their kids in line this time of year. Using Krampus just makes it a little darker and a little scarier—but hey, I’m their mom. They’re used to that by now.
The other night, while we were picking up dinner, we started talking about Krampus and demons. My boys wanted to know exactly what he was, so I told him he was the opposite of Santa.
My youngest asked if Krampus was really real, and I told him he was just as real as Santa Claus. This seemed to worry them a bit, but then my youngest proceeded to tell me that he wanted to be a demon.
We discussed the pros and cons of that, and how most demons are evil and mean and eat people’s souls, so he decided he would be a trickster demon because then he didn’t have to be really mean.
From there we talked about Santa and what would happen if he became a zombie and what he would be named. We decided he would be called Zombie Claus. The boys then told me I needed to write a book about Krampus and Zombie Claus. I told them that was an awesome idea, and that I should write them a book. I told them it could be another Ifs book. They loved that.
We fleshed out some ideas for the story and talked about how the boys would fight against Krampus and Zombie Claus and how they would defeat them. It was a proud mom moment for me.
There’s a sense of wonder and fear with my boys when it comes to Krampus. They are interested in what he is and fascinated with the dark side (just like me), but they are also slightly afraid. It’s just what I need to keep them in line.
Do any of you threaten your kids with Krampus during the holiday season?
Are any of you excited about the Krampus movie?
Looks like a good movie!
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