Goodbye Santa

I still buy completely into the possibility that my 12 year old believes in Santa.

Yes its a little niave on my part but everyone plays along and it makes Christmas magical - but does she really believe.

Two years ago I knew for sure she believed in Santa Clause which for a 10 year old I had to pat myself on the back as a parent that I had been pretty slick at carrying on the illusion for that long. Years of making tracks from snow skis in the snow, nibbled carrots tossed in the front driveway of my parents, a vivid red and white ski sock left behind that Santa must have left by the fire to dry off, a torn piece of Santa's suit left in the upstairs firegrate. If you think about it Santa was pretty careless by the time he got to our place each year - must have been the rum spiced eggnogg.
As I said I knew for sure my daughter believed two years ago because we were sitting down to dinner three weeks before Christmas and she had brought her 'friend' A.B. along with her to warm up and have some soup since they had been building a snowboard jump all afternoon. Somehow Santa came up and A.B. states matter of factly "Oh there is no such thing as Santa. My parents buy the gifts and they play Santa." I wanted to quietly reach across the table and throttle the smug little puke but when I saw our Daughter's big eyes look at me for reassurance that his parents were nuts, he was daft... something I said what I had told my eldest years before and what my parents had told me....

"As long as you believe in Santa he will continue to come. Once the older kids in the house stop believing in the magic then yes parents have to continue along the illusion for that child so that cousins, younger siblings and friends continue to believe." A.B. said that was Bullshit. I told him to shut up. I'm usually such a nice mother but this kid was pissing me off.

That Christmas we took extra special effort to ensure Santa could land at my parents house. After landing on the roof this time (the logistics of skiing on a roof are not for the faint hearted), to raindeer poop (my Dad's dog went out on the deck, so we just added to the illusion), nibbled carrots, a boot print in the fireplace soot and a letter written in Santa's special text that thanked our Daughter for believing in the magic and importance of Christmas still. Family and sharing were the most important aspects. Children that no longer believed in him, which he was sad about but understood, could still carry on the magic of Christmas by doing good deeds for elderly neighbours and people living with less. She bought it.

There was no mention really last year and she's pretty quiet this year about it. If she 'believes' until she goes away to school that is just fine with me.