Caution: Do not read with children nearby!
Leading up to Christmas
Ralph wrote a letter to Santa at his after school program a few weeks before Christmas. He asked for 3 items - 2 of which were Pokemon cards and "a car you ride on". I believe the 3rd item he wrote down was just something he overheard someone say and not something he really wanted as I have never heard him express any disappointment in not getting it.
I was pretty sure Ralph had been good enough to receive Pokemon cards . .and while he may have been good enough to receive "a car you ride on" there was absolutely no way we could store one in our garage but it was hard to convince him of that.
Ralph heard plenty of rumors concerning Santa from schoolmates I was asked if Santa was real a few times but would tell a little lie for the sake of keeping the magic real for Henry . . and (more so) for his friends.
Christmas Eve/Christmas Day
We rushed getting home from Grandma and Grandpa's on Christmas Eve and forgot to put out out treats for Santa . . I remembered as the boys were going to bed. I told Ralph I'd put something out for Santa. In the morning the boys noticed Santa left a bit of milk in the cup left out. They wanted to finish drinking the milk Santa left behind . . that had been sitting out all night. The boys excitedly dumped out the stockings while breakfast was being prepared. After only finding a few pieces of candy in my stocking they decided I must have been bad this year.
After breakfast we opened gifts. The first gift Henry opened he declared "this is what I always wanted". . .and, almost two weeks later, the Connect 4 is not yet opened. They were both very excited to see what was in the wrapped gift boxes. Henry would look at the tags and could recognize his name - and sometimes Ralph's depending on how Santa wrote the names. Yes, Ralph did get Pokemon cards. Henry . . .I'm not really sure if he had a favorite gift but he mentions the 'painted' Thomas the Train when people ask him what he got for Christmas.
After opening gifts at home we went to Grandma and Grandpa's for another round. They could hardly wait!
Santa's handwriting was a little more difficult to decipher at Grandma and Grandpa's. Henry would toss aside any package that did not have his name on it. After opening gifts we went upstairs to double check the tree upstairs and Santa left one more gift for the boys. Ralph did get "a care you can ride on" - his face was priceless. It's a 2-seater dune buggy type so both boys can ride in it. Luckily the weather was nice enough the boys could take it out for a quick spin.
Holiday Traditions
The handprint ornament has become a tradition of the past. Ralph's handprint was starting to get to big they way I was making them so I let it go. I do wish I would have just taken a handprint each year on a different piece of paper rather than make ornaments so they'd be easier to store and continue doing.
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