to believe or not to believe

we do not believe in santa claus. mainly because mark is selfish and does not want some fictional character to receive all the glory for his hard work! ;) but we do not have issues if you and yours believe in santa.... really, we don't.

we have tried to teach our kids to be sensitive to others who do believe, and we instruct them to not ruin the secret.

katie is by far my most sensitive and intuitive child. she can read people and situations better than most adults i know.   she honestly desires to do what is right ALL the time.  so last year she was really concerned about what to tell other kids about her beliefs in santa. she didn't want to lie to them b/c she knows that ALL lying in wrong... but she also did not want to hurt someone. so, the following story took place last year :

when katie was 3, she was determined that she wanted to have NOTHING to do with a creepy guy who climbed down her chimney at night without her realizing, and then proceed to sneak around her house while she slept..  nuh-uh! not for this three year old. so santa really died before he even became alive in the littlejohn house. katie has friends who DO believe in santa claus, and we are totally fine with that! 

however, today she said, "mom, what am i suppose to tell kids who ask me, "katie, what did you ask santa for?"

"well, hmmm..." i said.  instead of just telling her what i thought she should say, i tried to encourage problem solving and said, "well, what do YOU think you should say?"  she sat quietly for a few minutes... she even began a coloring project.  all the while, i knew her big brain was processing. 

after some time she piped up and said,
"mom, when kids ask me what i asked santa for, i am going to tell them that santa put me on the naughty list...!!!"

ho-ho-ho!
merry christmas!

s