I Believe in Santa

This year John Bob and I were so happy to spend a lot of time with our grandsons for Christmas.  Aiden is four and it was as if this were his first Christmas.  He wanted to hear all about Santa and how he brought gifts and was a little less interested in the good versus naughty part.


He didn't know that Paps and I had asked a red-cheeked friend to dress as Jolly old St Nick and come by our house on Christmas Eve.  His cousin Luke and Aiden were dressed up in Christmas sweaters when the knock on the door sounded.  All Aiden could do was giggle and smile.  Luke was scared to death of the chubby old elf, but couldn't keep his eyes of him. 


After climbing in his lap and confiding a few suggestions on what he wanted Santa to bring him later that night, Aiden allowed Santa to leave with the promise that he'd return down the chimney during the night.  The boys went on to open an inordinate number of gifts including a Buzz Lightyear flashlight from his Daddy for Aiden.  What a great gift.  All little boys love flashlights.


The gift opening on Christmas Eve as well as the stocking reveal the next morning was interesting. Both boys loved tearing off the wrappings.  They were also often more interested in what the other boy received than in their own stuff.  Watching them together was most interesting: they both were torn between insane jealousy and joy in togetherness.


Luke and family left for home along with our other kids and Aiden's dad on Sunday afternoon.  Aiden was staying with Gram and Paps for another two weeks.  He went to the Medicine Shoppe with me on Monday and played on his new Nintendo DS while I did the bookkeeping.  We hung around Shiloh Farm for the next couple of days and, despite Aiden's protests, took down most of the Christmas decorations.  Thursday was beautiful and we went to the Tyler zoo.  


Since Gram loves the zoo and always took her children as a Hurrah! School's Out treat every summer, I love the fact that Aiden loves to go to the zoo every time he visits.  Sometimes we go to the small zoo nearby in Lufkin and ride the train.  Sometimes we go to Tyler for the great zoo there.  Gram always buys a small animal for a treat at the end.  I wanted to get a bongo or kudu because Aiden and I had enjoyed learning to differentiate and recognize these formerly generic 'deer-like-animals.'  Aiden chose some little plastic finger puppets.  


John Caleb, Aiden's Dad, was able to return on Thursday afternoon, and we spent a lovely New Years with him.  Now, all of us were just about over the Christmas joy and thinking about the things ahead in the new year.  John Caleb had helped us carry out the huge tree and John Bob was cleaning out and repairing a problem in the fireplace.  Aiden tagged along right behind Paps whom he loves to assist.  Paps used a live circuit electric gimmick and tested all the fireplace's electric lines.  Aiden's nose was not far behind.  Paps used a flashlight to look all over to find the problem in the blower.  


Suddenly, Aiden ran off to return with his new flashlight.  He leaned over and looked all around the firebox, paused and checked to see if anyone was watching, and then leaned over peering up the chimney with his flashlight.  "Santa, are you up there?" he asked.  Where does Santa go after Christmas?