"You'll have to put your tooth under you pillow tonight so that the tooth fairy can take it and leave you some money!"
"Nah - I want to keep my tooth. I'd rather just have allowance."
-several minutes pass-
"Is the tooth fairy real"?
"Do you think she is real?"
"No. I don't. I mean - where does she even LIVE?"
"Maybe she lives in a fairy tree with all her little fairy friends..."
"*blank stare* She isn't real. I don't believe in her."
"Well, if you don't believe, then she isn't real. Do you still believe in Santa?"
"Oh yeah! Santa is real. And the Easter bunny is totally real. But the tooth fairy? Nope."
Crisis averted with Santa! I'm not ready to field that little lie yet. I've had a lot of learning to do with these mythical 'people' since they never visited my house growing up. My mom didn't think she should fill our fragile little minds with such nonsense. On one hand - thank you, Mom! On the other - it has made it really that much more difficult to pull off this lie to my offspring! I don't have the right answers. I don't know the fees involved. To wrap or not to wrap...UHG!
I'm really torn on my feeling about the imaginary people. We teach our kids to always tell the truth and discourage telling "stories" that could sound real but really aren't. And here we are, as adults, telling our children maybe the biggest lies of their lives! And perpetuate the lie for years on end. The justification? It makes holidays and occasions "magical". Somehow telling a complete stranger a child's wishes and dreams and then having a mystery man sneaking into one's home (which is a really creepy notion) is like magic. And as I think about it we are not only being hypocritical about truth telling but we are telling our children it is OK (in this instance) to tell a stranger their name, sit on their lap, and tell them what they want the most at this moment in their lives! WHAAAAAAAT?!
So I wonder what is wrong with thinking your parents are the real heroes and fulfilling your gift wishes? Why does some fat guy who "sees you when you're sleeping and knows when you're awake" get the credit? That guy isn't there for the temper tantrums. He isn't there for the victories. He isn't there to make lunch and he isn't there to kiss boo-boos. So why do we allow him to be there during one of the annual events when we show our loved ones how much we care by giving them presents?! The topic makes me a little bitter but I play along because I guess I have to.
Now back to fielding the lie - I've heard stories of when children found out the truth. They were destroyed! I have a feeling it will be heartbreaking for my boy. Santa and his elves have done some pretty awesome things over the years. And while it will become a reality that there was never a Santa Claus I hope that he will realize we only wanted things to be special and magical for him. And in the end, we were the awesome ones!! :)
C.
"Nah - I want to keep my tooth. I'd rather just have allowance."
-several minutes pass-
"Is the tooth fairy real"?
"Do you think she is real?"
"No. I don't. I mean - where does she even LIVE?"
"Maybe she lives in a fairy tree with all her little fairy friends..."
"*blank stare* She isn't real. I don't believe in her."
"Well, if you don't believe, then she isn't real. Do you still believe in Santa?"
"Oh yeah! Santa is real. And the Easter bunny is totally real. But the tooth fairy? Nope."
Crisis averted with Santa! I'm not ready to field that little lie yet. I've had a lot of learning to do with these mythical 'people' since they never visited my house growing up. My mom didn't think she should fill our fragile little minds with such nonsense. On one hand - thank you, Mom! On the other - it has made it really that much more difficult to pull off this lie to my offspring! I don't have the right answers. I don't know the fees involved. To wrap or not to wrap...UHG!
I'm really torn on my feeling about the imaginary people. We teach our kids to always tell the truth and discourage telling "stories" that could sound real but really aren't. And here we are, as adults, telling our children maybe the biggest lies of their lives! And perpetuate the lie for years on end. The justification? It makes holidays and occasions "magical". Somehow telling a complete stranger a child's wishes and dreams and then having a mystery man sneaking into one's home (which is a really creepy notion) is like magic. And as I think about it we are not only being hypocritical about truth telling but we are telling our children it is OK (in this instance) to tell a stranger their name, sit on their lap, and tell them what they want the most at this moment in their lives! WHAAAAAAAT?!
So I wonder what is wrong with thinking your parents are the real heroes and fulfilling your gift wishes? Why does some fat guy who "sees you when you're sleeping and knows when you're awake" get the credit? That guy isn't there for the temper tantrums. He isn't there for the victories. He isn't there to make lunch and he isn't there to kiss boo-boos. So why do we allow him to be there during one of the annual events when we show our loved ones how much we care by giving them presents?! The topic makes me a little bitter but I play along because I guess I have to.
Now back to fielding the lie - I've heard stories of when children found out the truth. They were destroyed! I have a feeling it will be heartbreaking for my boy. Santa and his elves have done some pretty awesome things over the years. And while it will become a reality that there was never a Santa Claus I hope that he will realize we only wanted things to be special and magical for him. And in the end, we were the awesome ones!! :)
C.
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