Santa is out of Control

Last night, Lucy dictated her letter to Santa
As I was putting her to bed, she realized she forgot to include Clifford the Big Red Dog in her letter

I assured her it was not a big deal, Santa would know she also loves Clifford
'Casue Peter (her elf on the shelf) will tell him Mama?
Yes honey, Peter will tell him and sometimes, Santa just knows stuff
Oh, okay, that's good

And she snuggled down and closed her little eyes and drifted off to sleep
(read she tossed and turned for ten minutes, fidgeted for 5, flopped for three and then finally drifted off only to wake up when I opened her door and then flopped back down, coughed and fell asleep for good)

For some odd reason, I have been laboring and lamenting with Santa over this Christmas and what Lucy should be getting

In 2009, Lucy's first Christmas, Santa went a bit bonkers - but it was a first child's first Christmas
Frankly, there was so much between Santa and all the family and friends that I'm not even sure I could remember what was under the tree

In 2010, Santa calmed down a bit - you know, as much as Santa can calm it down in a year's time especially when he realizes that this first child is probably going to be an only child

And last year, Santa reeled it in even more going with 4 gifts and a stocking

Lucy asked for a lion and tiger, which she received
Santa also brought her a trampoline...s/he made this call on his own - Peter reported back to him  Lucy had more energy to burn that the average child so I think this was actually a gift for us
Then s/he left her an alphabet zoo because s/he though Lucy would like it and she was totally down with learning the alphabet at that time
She also received some "bumpy" animals (as Lucy calls them) - this child loves PVC/plastic figures more than anyone I know - as part of her stocking

(and for the record, Santa got way better prices than what is reflected as I write this....as a matter of fact, it was all done for a fraction of the prices listed...in two cases, the prices have doubled in a year)

Then Santa filled her stocking with a toothbrush, tooth paste, some socks, a bag of M&Ms and I think a T Short with a tiger on it spelling her name

And I know when I look at that list, there are some who would think Santa was still going overboard but I gotta tell ya, Santa and his (her) Head Elf/Assistant were pretty satisfied with the haul and felt it was quite restrained given what it could have been

But this year?

This year, Santa is out of control
And I mean out of control in capital letters, like this:
OUT OF CONTROL

When I say out of control I mean Santa should be placed somewhere (an island) where there are no stores, wi-fi networks or computers/tablets/smart phones

Santa is spending money like a drunken sailor
Santa is filling up carts left and right
Santa is acting as a fulfillment center for a small country right now

I'm not sure what is going on with him (her)

Lucy will say something and Santa is fixated on it
Sometimes spends hours searching on line for it and then is willing to go to some pretty crazy and expensive lengths to get it

Last year, Santa was pretty chill about the gifts
All were picked out and ready for the tree by the first of December

This year?
This year Santa is trolling around looking, yes looking, for more

Why you ask?
I don't know
And when I ask Santa I get no reply, just a vacate stare which tells me Santa is not listening, he (she) is going through a mental checklist in his (her) head

Is this something Santa goes through every other year?
Like does Santa just lose control of his (her) senses and just go crazy?
Can any other Santas relate?
Is it because Lucy is an only child?
Is it because Santa is short? Plump?
Is it Santa trying to make up for something?

Santa thought he (she) was on the ball a month ago
Submitted a proposal, it was met with agreement and approval from the Head/Assistant Elf and the order was placed and fulfilled

And then Santa just plain old lost it and has packages flying in from all over the place
Santa has not only lost "it," Santa has also lost track of what has been secured for Lucy
Santa has a screen open with a pending order on it as we speak

Well, Santa, let me just say this to you(rself), it is Christmas indeed and as much as you love showering people, especially little 3' blond haired blue eyed people with an infectious laugh, an impish smile, a quick wit and a voice that warms even the greenest and grinchiest (I totally made that word up but I think you get it) of souls, with gifts, you do not need to do so

What you need to do is take a deep breath and remember this:

No mater what that little person asked for,
No matter what is on her list,
No matter what you give her,
At the end of the day,
All she wants is for you to love her
All she wants is for you to play with her, laugh at her jokes, color with her, let her watch something and snuggle her when she needs it most
All she wants is you to be there when she needs you, when she calls your name

Yes, part of Christmas is about giving gifts......

But remember this, your gift can be a drive through the neighborhoods to see the lights
Your gift can be teaching her the right words to Frosty the Snowman
Your gift could be sharing with her your favorite Christmas Special
And then letting her discover her own
Your gift could be baking cookies together
Letting her help you wrap presents
Reading stories
Your gift could be picking out the tree together then decorating it
Your gift could be letting her choose the cake for Baby Jesus
Taking her to Mass to celebrate the season
Praying with her before she goes to bed

No matter what is under the tree Santa,
No matter how many (how few),
No matter how expensive (or inexpensive because you waited until Amazon dropped the price),
No matter what Santa, Lucy will wake up Christmas morning and shriek with delight because you will have been there
She will shriek with delight because you left her something,
Because you ate her cookies and drank the milk she set out
And though she may ask where something is that she wrote to you about, her Mum and Dad will be there to remind her what it is really all about:

And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night.
And, lo, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them: and they were sore afraid.
And the angel said unto them, 
Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord.  
And this shall be a sign unto you; Ye shall find the babe wrapped in swaddling clothes, lying in a manger.
And suddenly there was with the angel a multitude of the heavenly host praising God, and saying, Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men.

LUKE 2:8-14

It is about the birth of Baby Jesus, the magic of Santa, and the unconditional love of a Mum, a Dad and a Toddler

Merry Christmas Lucy

Maria the Mum