Tensions were running a little high one evening. The kids were tired, a bit cranky, and not very enthused about the dinner I had made. To perk their moods up a bit I thought I’d ask some questions about Santa.
“Hey, are you guys excited about Santa this year?!” I asked with a wide-eyed smile.
“Yeah!” was their joyous response.
Chloe’s joy faded quickly though. She set her spoon aside, put her head down while looking up at me with her eyes and very seriously said, “Daddy, I don’t like Santa Claus. He’s mean.”
We had just watched The Grinch, so I knew exactly what she was referring to. I explained that the Grinch was mean, but Santa wasn’t. Then she smiled and said “ok, I like Santa!”
Then she got all serious again. “Daddy, does Santa have dogs? I don’t like dogs.”
That’s when Ellie chimed in, “No silly, Santa has reindeer.”
“Oh, okay! I like reindeer!”
One evening when my parents had the girls they took them ‘to see Santa’at Fantasy Land.
Despite the nervousness Chloe had, she was very excited to see Santa. She walked right up to Santa, climbed in his lap and said, “I want a blue dress, and a pink kitty.” She even gave him a hug. I guess he’s not so mean after all.
Ellie is the one who decided to keep her distance and preferred to write a letter.
This year we are spending Christmas in Japan with Aya’s family again. Ellie remembers that Santa came, but she was starting to get confused about some of the logistics this year. Santa had brought chocolates in the shape of the Japanese cartoon character Anpanman and Ellie was reminiscing about the experience.
“Daddy, how did Santa bring Anpanman chocolates? He doesn’t know Anpanman. How does he even know where Japan is?”
I explained that Santa travels the world, and speaks at least 12 different languages.
“Really!? Wow… Santa knows Japanese?! Is Santa going to bring Anpanman chocolates for me this year again?”
We’ll just have to wait and see.
Still worried Santa might not get the message she was in Japan, we wrote out a letter and mailed it in Japan. Now she’s deciding if Santa wants cookies or rice crackers for a snack.
No matter what language Santa speaks, the Santa side of Christmas has become more fun as the girls get older. I’m excited to see what Santa brings too.
