Dear Santa

Dear Santa,

I'm afraid I have a confession to make. I don't believe in you - or, at least I didn't until last night. But you, my roly-poly friend, were the originator of a Christmas miracle unlike one I've ever before seen and today, I say with full conviction - I believe.

Sure, Lee and I were the ones who actually bought the gifts. I may or may not have used psychology on my kids to manipulate them into asking you for gifts that I had already purchased for them. Lee and I happily munched on "your" cookies and gulped down the nice, cold milk last night before we went to bed. And, okay, I wanted it to look authentic, so yeah, I messed up the fireplace and wrote a phony "Thank You" to the kids. Just because I don't - er, didn't - believe doesn't mean they shouldn't experience the thrill of your myth right?

But then, the true magic happened. My kids, who have been a nightmare to put to bed for several months since they began sharing a room, were perfect last night. On any given night, dear Santa, they have been known to get out of bed 5 or 6 times and goof around for up to an hour. We've resorted to putting Tia in our own bed until she falls asleep just to protect our sanity. But last night? Perfection. Not a peep. They so anticipated your midnight visit to our home that they immediately shut their eyes and drifted off to sleep. And Lee and I sat in wondrous silence, unsure exactly what to do with ourselves.

And so, after last night, I do believe. I believe in you, Santa. But *ahem* I have a tiny request. Since it's still Christmas and all, I figured I could ask one small favor. Could we possibly tell them you're coming to our house every night? Could we take full advantage of your magical powers and bring a little holiday cheer into our home nightly around 8:00? That would really be great. If you would be willing to fly to St. Louis on a daily basis for us, we would be forever grateful and I will be your strongest advocate for the rest of my life.

Think about it...

Sincerely,
A weary mom

P.S. We had a wonderful Christmas. Here are the gifts "you" got them. Tia loves her dollhouse and Sloan was thrilled with his excavator set. You did good, Santa!

The much anticipated excavator set that came with a million tiny pieces. Say it with me (and make sure your voice is laced with sarcasm) - awesome!

Here is Tia's super fun, tricked out dollhouse. We will log a lot of hours in playing with this house. It was a supreme investment.
The family. Mommy is sitting at the picnic table while daddy grills her some grub and also pushes the twins on their swingset - they're a modernized family.

I had to include this picture because it makes me laugh. That's Tia in her new pirate costume and Sloan dressed as Darth Vadar sneaking up from behind to slay her.