![\"Santa\"](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/r9f.352.myftpupload.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2013\/12\/Santa-e1388083898336.jpg\")
<\/a><\/p>\nWe had a lovely Christmas, but it’s just not the same without little kids. How about you? Here’s one from the archives.<\/em><\/p>\n *<\/p>\n No separate wrapping paper and tags. Not having to disguise one\u2019s penmanship or remember whether Santa\u2019s cursive slants left or right every year. Not having to remember that the girls can\u2019t yet\u00a0read<\/em>\u00a0cursive.<\/p>\n I guess there are a few benefits to Christmas with nonbelievers. But mostly it makes me sad that we no longer need to dispose of scummed-over cocoa and apples for the reindeer after the kids have finally gone to bed on Christmas Eve. (My brother trained his kids to leave beer for Santa.)<\/p>\n It wasn\u2019t so bad when our eldest daughter grew suspicious about Santa\u2019s largesse. In fact, she seemed more impressed that her notoriously cheap parents were the ones springing for all that loot than by the idea of a fat guy squeezing down millions of chimneys in the space of a few hours.<\/p>\n Plus, she was a good sport about keeping the charade going for the sake of her little sister\u2014and parents. I remember spending Christmas a long time ago with the same brother who so cleverly customized Santa\u2019s repast. His kids tumbled into the living room where I was trying to sleep, unable to contain their excitement a minute past four a.m. They spied the riot of plastic tunnels and the squeaky rotating wheel under the tree.<\/p>\n \u201cA hamster!! Oh, thank you, Santa, thank you!!\u201d they gushed into the darkness. Nobody had to prompt them into politeness. Theirs was a spontaneous outpouring of reverence.<\/p>\n Now politeness is about\u00a0all<\/em>\u00a0we can expect. The girls are teenagers with exacting and expensive taste. They write out detailed wish lists while making it clear that my judgment is not to be trusted, that I shouldn\u2019t venture off-list.<\/p>\n Then they are disappointed to get everything they want except the element of surprise. But their manners are impeccable as they dutifully thank us.<\/p>\n I miss Santa.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" We had a lovely Christmas, but it’s just not the same without little kids. How about you? Here’s one from the archives. * No separate wrapping paper and tags. Not having to disguise one\u2019s penmanship or remember whether Santa\u2019s cursive … Continue reading