Never Stop Believing

Tomorrow is Christmas Eve. The mood in my house with three small children is euphoric. As a mom I struggle to encourage the excitement of presents and Santa while balancing the true meaning and reason for the season.

Bret mentioned the other day that we should enjoy this Christmas because it might be the last one that Emily believes. He was about second grade when he stopped believing. His words stopped me cold. I couldn't believe that our little girl was almost old enough to know about Santa. It made me really sad. In fact the other night when we as a family were watching the Polar Express I cried just a little thinking about Emily.

I was older than second grade when I found out about Santa and I remember it being a really sad Christmas for me. Not so much finding out as the fact that it was also one of the first years I didn't get a lot of toys and more clothes. It was a feeling of not being a kid anymore and losing some Christmas' magic. It was also the first of many years that my parents were fighting a lot.

I saw a pin on http://www.pinterest.com/ the other day that was a letter from a mom to her daughter about the truth about Santa. It made me realize that I wanted to think about how I handled this with Emily. I want her to understand that Santa as a person may not be real what he stands for and what he represents is very real. For now I am thankful that she is excited and still believes. We will cross that bridge when we get to it.