Advent Activity: On the First Day of Christmas

And so December starts, with all the early celebrations of Christmas.  The kids were very excited about their Advent calendars yesterday, each receiving a Lego calendar.  And they gave me something too:  a mini-figure of action heroes/mutants Wolverine and Cyclops to add to the Christmas village as we count down to my birthday! So I'm guessing the theme is superheroes??  Not sure.  I'll have to wait and see, just like them.

We don't have the Advent socks up yet, but the activity was making paper chains.  Sis made the first, long garland, which we hung between our living and dining rooms and then Bud added a shorter one, hung in counterpoint to the first.  Festive.  When the tree goes up, it will stand in front of the window in the dining room, framed by the chains.



The tree.  We haven't put the tree up, so busy with prepping the basement and house for the new cats who arrive this coming Saturday.  We've decided to pare down the decorations, opting to use paper origami creations and our cookie cutter collection to decorate, both of which are more cat-friendly than tempting non-edible ornaments.  This way, our new cats whom we don't know yet and our old cats who will probably be in a heightened state of agita won't hurt or be hurt by the tree decorations.  We hope to put it up in the next day or so.

Because, for us, Christmas will be early.  See, Goo is a doctor now, his first year as a resident, and he is not off on Christmas, he recently learned.  We had considered splitting Christmas with him and my in-laws into two smaller celebrations, but the kids roundly objected.  And so we got a dispensation from Santa to have him come early for Christmas, the weekend before.

Which means, we now are going to Texas a couple of days early to spend some extra time with our family there.

So, if I had already thought the holiday season between Thanksgiving and Christmas was short--only 3 school weeks and preparatory weekends--it just got much shorter!  (And the kids are asking if they can open the extra doors on their calendars early!!!)

But to quote Olaf, "All good things, all good things."

Advent Activity: Chalkboard Decorations

By Sis, Young Babysitter, and Sis again (Bud did the decorations on the tree and an igloo with penguins that were too hard to photograph):

Advent Activity: The Magic of Christmas

I think we might have rather inadvertently started a new holiday custom:  Saint Nicholas visited last night, bringing the "Phineas and Ferb" holiday CD and two nutcrackers, Clara and the Mouse King.

From my quick reading, I know we should have actually put our shoes out the night before (in honor of the Bishop of Myra who secretly gave gifts, like coins in shoes left out), but this was just an experiment to show how kids in other countries celebrate (or at least used to, in that I'm not sure if there are any Christians, of those who celebrate holidays, who now don't do Dec. 25; I'll have to check.)

Bud pondered the experiment later as we waited for the bus, "Is magic real in the world?  Or it is all just a cartoon?"  Which I took to mean, "is it all not real?" since we often contrast live action with "not real" animation.  He moved on before I could address his mature musings.  Thankfully, because I'm not prepared to define magic.

There have been lots of questions this year about whether Santa is real.  Not real questions, not direct, just indirect musings that I have answered just as indirectly.  "Someone brings the presents."   Though, I did completely dispel the whole Elf-on-a-Shelf thing, because I don't like the tattling and material reward focus of that story, and told the kids outright that I was the one who moved the Elf and I'd be glad to keep moving it for a fun game as long as we understood that the story about flying to tattle to Santa so kids can or cannot get good gifts is made up.  I told them not to tell their friends, though, because some families like the Elf story and we wanted them to have that magic. I know, playing with fire. And they understood and are still perfectly happy to play with the Elf.

And just when I think, because of their questions (and my risky Elf move), they are toying with belief, they really truly embrace that Saint Nick was here last night, happening upon our shoes out in the rain even though we'd never put shoes out before, moving them indoors, filling them, and even loading our iPod with the new CD immediately so we could play it this morning.  It's the faith of childhood.  And it's beautiful.

Yes, Bud, magic is real in the world.

Advent Activity: Behind Already

Well, it didn't take long for us to fall behind.  Yesterday's activity was "write a letter to Santa," but they didn't.  Instead they played with Neighbor Boy, whose mother had had ACL surgery that morning.  for 1 1/2 hours, they fought with lightsabers, spun Ninjagos (Ninjagoes?  Ninjagi? Ninjagoi?), and ran around outside in the dense, wet fog.  But since they were getting along beautifully, I didn't interrupt.

They remembered the activity this morning before school but didn't have time to write them.  They won't this afternoon either, as we have another friend coming over for a visit.

Which means we're behind two days, both yesterday's activity and then today's ("learn more about St. Nicholas's Day").  At least it's because we're having fun!

That Elf

We are the hosts of an Elf on the Shelf, which the kiddos remembered vividly from last year (thanks, Gommie!). But we're not so interested in the spying-to-report-back-to-Santa narrative. Instead, our Elf's job is to renew our Christmas spirit, which can sometimes lag in the chaos of preparations and flagging patience. So, each day, it moves. Not at night, as that occasions very early rising to search the house for its new position. Instead, it moves throughout the day, usually during school but sometimes during rest. A clue: the cat always seems to meow when the elf is about. And it is that which occasions the mad dash in search of the new hiding place. "It" because last year it was "Amy Tango" something; this year, it's "Shaun," after the sheep, a funny British claymation import. Of course, other people warn the kids that the Elf will tell Santa how they behave. But, I tell them that Santa knows and, because no one is perfect, he doesn't expect perfect: good is good enough.

Thanksgiving 2010: Big Fat Man in the Red Suit

. . . has come to town! Yep, Santa appeared at the end of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Even though we tape the parade (and haven't watched any of it yet), I always like to watch the Santa part live.

And I cry everytime.

A good cry.

Merry Christmas Season!

The Truth

I've seen two great essays about children and the belief in Santa. The first is over at Motherlode, a reprinted letter by Martha Brockenbrough whose daughter asks if she is Santa. No, she says, she is not:

Santa is a teacher, and I have been his student, and now you know the secret of how he gets down all those chimneys on Christmas Eve: he has help from all the people whose hearts he’s filled with joy.

With full hearts, people like Daddy and me take our turns helping Santa do a job that would otherwise be impossible.

So, no. I am not Santa. Santa is love and magic and hope and happiness. I’m on his team, and now you are, too.

The second, by Kathryn Harrison, begins with her own complicated relationship with her usually absent mom who appeared at Christmas to carefully and lovingly fill her stocking. Then Harrison details the different reactions of her children to the existence of Santa as well as the Tooth Fairy.

As a mother, I never thought to ask myself how long I should try to preserve the lie of Santa Claus — as long as possible, I assumed. Stockings remained the part of Christmas I loved best, and I began collecting trifles for our three children as early as August. Setting out the cookies, pouring the cocoa, reading “The Night Before Christmas,” for years their father and I stirred the children into a frenzy of anticipation so intense they couldn’t fall asleep. At three o’clock on Christmas morning they were trampling us in our bed, chattering and squealing and pointing out the window at the spot in the sky where they’d seen a reindeer-drawn sleigh streak past the stars.

And then her son is chagrined that she didn't tell him the truth, while her older daughter holds on to the myths despite evidence to the contrary. Harrison and her youngest daughter seem to agree on agnosticism, neither knowing or not knowing if Santa is real or not. Which is exactly the answer I have given my kids the times they have already asked about Santa: "I don't know, Bud and Sis. Lots of people believe in Santa. I've never seen him, but I know that someone delivers presents." And the older I get, the more I'm with Brockenbrough: I'm on Santa's team now, too.

Gimme That Ol' Time Santa Magic

Sis, as you may know, is Santa-phobic. There seems to be no specific reason for her fear, no traumatic Santa experience; she just doesn't want to be anywhere near a real Santa. It got so bad last year at our church's cookie sale, with a live Santa, that she couldn't be in the same room with him. And she remembered that this year and said she wouldn't go if he were there. Pictures, tv shows, decorations are fine but not a living, breathing Santa. Which is why, for 3 years running, we haven't had their pictures taken with the mall Santa.

But Santa wasn't at the cookie sale when Sis arrived this morning. No, he came in about 2 minutes later while she was still in the front of the room. We tried to usher her away but of course she has Santa-dar and noticed him immediately. And didn't cry, begged to be held, or back away.

No, she waved.

Sure, from behind the sniffing comfort of Real Shirt, but this was progress.

And then, once he was seated in his special chair, she announced that she wanted to go shake his hand. And she did! Marched right up to him and extended her Shirt-free hand. We were stunned and quickly recorded what we thought to be an isolated moment of insanity in pictures.

But it happened again. She wanted to tell him what she wanted for Christmas so she went up and spoke to him. And then agreed to pose for a picture. And then sat on his lap! Eventually, she could do it all without Shirt. And all on her own initiative. We were bowled over. As was Santa, who is a very dear friend of our minister and has long known of Sis's fear. Santa was wonderful with her, very reassuring and gentle but not smothering at all. Just perfect.

By the time we left, she didn't blink to see Santa as he wandered the cookie sale and the halls of church. And it was she who insisted that we go say goodbye and "Merry Christmas."

You'll be getting a picture of the miracle in your Christmas card!