Santa Claus - Not for young readers PART I

So now that my children are old enough to really get into this Christmas thing, and really start to believe, it creates a more dramatic and complicated Christmas than I ever thought it would. As a child, Christmas just is what it is. You don't realize all that your parents do to make it so special because in your mind, its magic. But now that I am the parent, trying to make all the magic and work a full-time job, its VERY HARD! Of course i didn't go out and buy gifts in November, why would I do that when I still have plenty of time, right? Well, we weren't going to get a ton of presents anyway this year, but I found myself buying presents the week before, with the children there, because I had no one to watch them... and I thought, I'll get the Santa presents later... so we went on Monday to get the Santa presents... Brad was going to stay in the car with the girls, Tori was sleeping, and Abbie... well, she had to go potty of course. So I had to take her inside with me, and by the time we went all the way to the very back of the store, I wasn't about to take her all the way to the car and then go back inside to get the gifts. So I'm trying to work it all out in my head how I'm going to make this work. So I start with, "You have to close your eyes..." Then I realize there's no way that's going to work, so then I get desperate with, "This is from Santa, he gave me money to buy your gift." I thought that would work till I told some lady in line that and she about hit me in the head and gave me the most disgusted look I've ever seen. My face turned red with embarrasment as I apparently made like the worst parental Christmas mistake there is... Abbie really is oblivious though, she doesn't really care. So I thought that might fly, as I made her promise not to tell Tori. Well I left it in the car last night, and today as we were driving to a meeting Tori goes, "You got Barbie and the Diamond Castle!?!" I couldn't believe it. I'm so stupid. SO... there goes that Santa gift... maybe its better anyway since I totally screwed it up with Abbie being there... so all day I'm debating, what should I do? Should I just give up and tell them the truth? But all day they are asking us things about Santa like, "How does he get here? How does he know if we're good? How does he see us? When is he going to be here?" Etc Etc and Brad and I are just filling their head with these make believe stories aka LIES and I'm just thinking to myself, "I can't believe I am sitting here lying to my child... and for WHAT?!" So we went to Costco to go get WALL-E and two toys that can be from Santa... but of course we have to take the kids into Costco because they are too ansy to stay inside the car, so we decide to split up. I go pick up the photos that I got printed for Brad (surprise) and guess what, he has the debit card, so I have to spill the beans that I'm at the photo lab, asking him for his debit card (I didn't have mine with me) so he comes over, tries to hide the girls gifts under a t-shirt he was buying for me, the girls start snooping, and Wall-E falls out! SO, then we have to pretend that we have to put it back, which then sends the girls into tantrums, so Brad takes them to the car, I go change their gifts (except Wall-E because of course I "put that back"). So we went through all that just to get them presents from Santa. On the way home from Costco Tori is crying that it doesn't seem like Christmas this year because we don't have a Christmas tree or stockings (and where is Santa going to put our presents if there aren't stockings) and no SNOW! We can't have Christmas with NO SNOW! So I decide to take the opportunity to share with her the TRUE meaning of Christmas, and how Christmas is in our hearts and the meaning, etc. etc.

So Tori put out the 8 carrots for the 8 reindeer and 2 cookies, and a cup of milk in front of our fireplace, thank goodness we have one of those! And Brad comes in after a quick trip to Walgreens since they are open till 10:00 to get milk, he comes in with 2 bags and declares that he no longer is allowed to go to the store alone because he spent $40.00 As he walks in, he tips over the glass of milk which spills all over the carpet and he has this really mad look on his face, and I just start busting out laughing. I say, "Brad, its okay, you can laugh, its funny." So he decides to smile a little and then shows me how he got stockings for the girls and some candy to fill them, and get this... he got them BRATZ Pez candy because we never get them any Bratz stuff and so Tori will think, there's no way it was Dad, it had to be Santa because he doesn't know we don't get Bratz stuff... tricky tricky. So anyway, that's the part 1 of our Santa Saga, I think tomorrow morning might be worth all the lies, but I'll let you know. I guess they can have one more year to their childhood innocence.