Do you believe in magic?

Earlier this week, the Wilson Family adopted a new family member - Nicholas, a new Elf on the Shelf. If you haven't heard about this charming tradition, you should take a look at the website, it really is cute. My niece and nephew love this new member of our family (my nephew even wants to take him to college with him in 10 years)!

Julian, Abs & Nicholas

Part of his magic is that he watches over the kids in the family between Thanksgiving & Christmas Eve and goes back to Santa to report every night. When he comes back from the North Pole, he's usually gotten into some mischief - like opening candy, hiding or pulling some prank. The kids aren't allowed to touch him or his magic might disappear (he's a great discipline tool too!).

Nicholas checking out the fish tank!

Nicholas is a source of disagreement in our family though. My dad seems to think that since the kids believe so strongly in this elf, they will be angry when they find out that the magic was all in fun. I have a friend who has told her children that her Santa doesn't exist. She has equated the belief in Santa and the belief in Jesus on the same level. If / When her kids find out the *real deal* about Santa, she thinks that this will impact their belief in God. As a child, I don't ever remember equating the two. I knew that the reason we had Christmas wasn't about Santa, it was/is a celebration of the birth of Jesus.

Santa Claus

When you were a kid, were you upset when you found out about Santa? Did you question your faith? What about the Easter Bunny or Tooth Fairy? Did you question everything you couldn't see after you found out about Santa? Were you angry with your parents?

Am I the odd girl out?

On a different note, Happy Thanksgiving. Keep the magic going :)