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Santa Claus really does have a pretty good gig.

He's credited with being all-knowing, all-seeing and immensely generous, without actually having to do any of the things people claim he does. Truly, Santa would be nothing without the parents who support his cause.

When it comes to Santa Claus, many adults are as stubborn as kids, insistent that jolly ol' St. Nick does in fact exist if only in their hearts.

"I'm a grown up, and I still believe in Santa," said 75-year-old Portfina Kaberlein on Wednesday. This great-grandmother is like many parents and grandparents who attest to "magic" that comes from believing in Santa Claus.

"I wanted my kids to feel that excitement," Kaberlein said. "For the longest time, they believed and now, they're teaching their own kids that there is a Santa Claus."

From themselves masquerading as the jolly ol' elf to fabricating stories and orchestrating freak occurrences, parents often go to great lengths to keep their children believing.

"For years, our neighbor, Bill, would come to the house dressed as Santa," Kaberlein said. "The first time he came, our girls were so shocked, they slammed the door on him. They really believed after that."

What to make of Santa can be a real dilemma for other parents. For Lora Garrett, it was simple. She never was taught to believe in Santa, and her husband, who grew up believing, remembers being heartbroken when he finally learned the truth.

They can't bear to cause the same disappointment for their own kids, so their children will know exactly where their presents come from, Lora said on Thursday.

"I don't intend to make them believe in Santa Claus, because I can't bear to imagine how heartbroken they'd be when they realize it's not true," she said.

Other parents said they struggle with the "story-telling" necessity of perpetuating the myth. As a Christian, Kaaz said she struggles with whether or not it is right to lie to her children about Santa.

"I think it's fun to be kids and enjoy the idea of Santa," said Stacy Kaaz, a mother of four. "But we make sure they know the reason is Jesus. We encourage them to believe, but our emphasis is on Jesus."

For parents who do believe, protecting the magic from other non-believing children especially those set out to pop the Santa Claus bubble can be quite a challenge. Many parents say their children didn't hear the truth from them. Most learn that Santa Claus doesn't exist from an older sibling or mocking classmate.

Kaaz said she was disappointed that her oldest two boys

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