With Christmas just days away, it’s the Eve before the big day that may have many parents worried.
Social media, television and older children tend to leave little encouragement that Santa Claus will come to visit the little ones on Christmas Eve.
With the rush of holiday shopping, gatherings and festivities of the season, parents may need some help to remind their little ones of the magic of Jolly Ol’ Saint Nick.
Traditionally, carrots are left for the reindeer, cookies for Santa and perhaps a bit of a mess near the fireplace to prove that Santa did indeed visit.
However, children are getting cleverer and their methods of investigating whether Santa actually exists have become more intense. They no longer look up at the sky hoping to see a sleigh full of toys being pulled by 10 reindeer, or stay up waiting to hear the pitter-patter of boots on the roof.
Apart from NORAD, the online Santa Tracker, here are a few creative ways to remind your children that Santa visited:
• Place a used Starbucks coffee cup with “Santa” written on it near the garbage can
• Spread white glitter near the gifts and say that they are melted snow from the North Pole
• Take a picture of the tree, photoshop Santa arranging the gifts and tell the children you ‘caught’ him in the act
• Finally, for the a bit more humor, leave an empty bottle of “diabetes” medicine with Santa’s name on it that he left behind. Seeing how Santa loves his sweets, he may have used all his pills.
The holiday season is a magical time of year. As soon as it comes, it leaves just as fast. For the little believers that get excited to visit Santa at the mall, let’s make them feel extra special by showing them that Santa came to visit them too.
– Shana Vanderark/Special to the Reporter
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