My parents are down visiting for a few days while my dad has a few business meetings and last night in the car I heard the cutest story.My mom does monogramming and embroidery for the sweetest woman who owns her own preppy store a few towns over from ours. My mom and Christine have become good friends and the other day Christine was in need of a babysitter for her daughters, Nicolette (the youngest, whose about 7) and Caroline (whose about 11). Nicolette does Irish dancing and the few times I have been around her she has flashed her mischievous smile at me and mangaged to melt my heart and remind me how much I love children. Caroline is into singing and has curly redish hair. I was told that Nicolette brought over her a trophy she won for first place that is almost bigger than her little body so I was already cracking up at this picture and also at my parents practicing for grand children, in a sense.
Anyway, before I get too side tracked...my parents had the kids over and my mom made her famous chocolate chip cookies (they truly are the best cookies I've ever had and yes I do have VERY high standards so coming from me that says something) while my dad had Caroline next to him on the couch stringing cranberries and popcorn for the Christmas tree while watching Miracle on 34th Street.. and little Nicolette bopping around and chatting to my dad. My dad is very big into Christmas, well that is the understatement of the year-I'll explain more later but I am not surprised to find out what Nicolette thought at the end of this small story. Nicolette took notice of one of the many wooden Santa Claus' that decorate our home and noticed how it held a list with children's names on it, not finding her unique name on there, Nicolette said directed at my father, "that's okay, yours isn't on here either!" As the night progressed not only did Nicolette discover that my father's initials are S.C....or to most kids--SANTA CLAUS, hahaha. I was told that she later wiggled her way between Caroline and my dad and cuddled up to my father and began to tell him what she reallllyy wanted for Christmas. At this point, I broke out in laughter thinking about this cutie telling my dad what she wanted for Christmas. For some reason they went down in our basement later in the night and saw a sleigh my dad had downstairs--Christine told my mom that now Nicolette really will believe that my dad is Mr. SC :)
I loved hearing this story because it simply is so precious and I love children's innocence and good-naturedness. But also because for a few other reasons-when I was small, I did not think my dad was Santa but he did a wonderful job convincing me SC did in fact exist. He did this by sticking a santa hat very far up our chimney, tracking chimney dust in interesting places, rattling bells/sounds on top of our roof-I mean how would my dad have climbed up there or gotten the effect he did if Santa didn't exist :P
My dad has also instilled a love for Christmas in me at an early age and I've always admired the great lengths he goes to to celebrate this special holiday--ever year he gets a huge, and quite marvelous Christmas tree to which he strings popcorn and cranberry garlin from scratch, and helps my mom bring out wooden Santa antiques and tasteful decor that just takes over our house in the warm and loving way. When I was a small girl, my dad would take me to the local hand crafts center in town and buy beautiful glass bulbs in stunning colors and he's always had a sharp and discriminating eye that has landed us on so many rare ornaments. He would let me decorate the tree but I'd always place light ornaments on the bottom and heavier ones on top so he told me later that he would love to see how happy I would be placing the ornaments on the tree and then he would later go back and move the ornament to balance the tree out better. I appreciated his sense to let my brother and I have that initial satisfaction that we were doing the most important job and helping my dad out. To this day, the handmade ornaments we made in kindergarten and elementary school-such as my angel with my chubby face smiling through, continue to reappear and I know my dad wouldn't have it any other way.
He puts his personal touch on the holiday in a very genuine and fun way--every year he makes a family cookie recipe and had my brother and I sprinkle them when we were small tots. He still enjoys our help to this day. My mom will get gifts for my brother and I signed from both of them but every year my dad will go out and find very unique gifts like an ornament from years way back, a stamp seal necklace in the shape of a heart (my gift last year) or something you didn't ask for..for Christmas but once you open it, you knew all this time you needed it all along! With these special and very methotically thought-out gifts he will attach a card that he will rhyme every phrase and make it into a guessing game as you try to link the phrases and figure out what treasure you have captured this year.
He is a wonderful father who brings magic & love to the hearts of his own children, and also touches the hearts of others, such as little Nicolette. Looking forward to being home with him in our North Pole-esque home soon xo
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