It's over for West. He called our bluff. No more magical, red-suited, jolly old man for our oldest son.
He told us of his doubts when we told him that we were going to a large shopping center to see the giant Christmas tree lit up for the beginning of the season. There were fireworks, and we were going out to eat. (Oh, and the Apple store was nearby which I'm pretty sure is why my husband came up with the idea. Oh, and Anthropologie is next door which I'm pretty sure is why I agreed.)
So we told West we were going to see the lighting of this tree and that Santa was going to be there. To which West replied:
"But Santa isn't real."
"He's not?" I replied.
"No, Mom. I know he is not real," said West.
"How do you know?" I responded.
"Well, we are not going to see any flying reindeer at this place. And there won't be a sleigh. And I know he didn't walk," said West in his most matter-of-fact, 8 year-old voice -- with a head bob and tilt for emphasis.
"Hmmm . . ." I said. "Okay then. What about all those Christmas cartoons that say that Santa is real?"
"Mom," said West as he nonchalantly took a drink, "The rabbits also talk in cartoons."
"How do you know rabbits don't talk?" I was okay with his disbelief at first but suddenly I saw innocence fleeting, so my response to rabbits talking was a second of desperation to keep him believing. Too late.
Sarcastically, West said, "Well, they don't talk my language."
"Alright. When did you decide that he wasn't real?" I said with defeat.
"Last year, when I did not get what I wanted, I knew he wasn't real," said West. "I wanted a Lego Star Wars MTT and I never got one. If Santa was real, he could have made one."
I shook my head in agreement. It was true. He wanted the MTT and it was discontinued by the Lego Company. I looked around the internet hoping -- but the best I found was an ebay bid starting at $500 for the MTT.
I ended the conversation with, "Here's the deal. Santa still comes to kids who pretend, okay? Don't tell your brother and as long as you play along, Mom is in, okay? I'll keep doing the stockings and gifts and all way past your 20's if you keep coming home to me for Christmas."
"I can do that, Mom," West reassured me. "No problem."
West, 3 years-old, on Christmas morning
So we told West we were going to see the lighting of this tree and that Santa was going to be there. To which West replied:
"But Santa isn't real."
"He's not?" I replied.
"No, Mom. I know he is not real," said West.
"How do you know?" I responded.
"Well, we are not going to see any flying reindeer at this place. And there won't be a sleigh. And I know he didn't walk," said West in his most matter-of-fact, 8 year-old voice -- with a head bob and tilt for emphasis.
"Hmmm . . ." I said. "Okay then. What about all those Christmas cartoons that say that Santa is real?"
"Mom," said West as he nonchalantly took a drink, "The rabbits also talk in cartoons."
"How do you know rabbits don't talk?" I was okay with his disbelief at first but suddenly I saw innocence fleeting, so my response to rabbits talking was a second of desperation to keep him believing. Too late.
Sarcastically, West said, "Well, they don't talk my language."
"Alright. When did you decide that he wasn't real?" I said with defeat.
"Last year, when I did not get what I wanted, I knew he wasn't real," said West. "I wanted a Lego Star Wars MTT and I never got one. If Santa was real, he could have made one."
I shook my head in agreement. It was true. He wanted the MTT and it was discontinued by the Lego Company. I looked around the internet hoping -- but the best I found was an ebay bid starting at $500 for the MTT.
I ended the conversation with, "Here's the deal. Santa still comes to kids who pretend, okay? Don't tell your brother and as long as you play along, Mom is in, okay? I'll keep doing the stockings and gifts and all way past your 20's if you keep coming home to me for Christmas."
"I can do that, Mom," West reassured me. "No problem."
1 comment:
Awesome! He is so cute! I hope he really kept the news a secret for his brother's sake.
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