Today, I went to read "Ten Apples Up On Top" to the nieces.

We haven't read it in nigh on half a year - Ana's pretty much forgotten the words.

Which is probably why, when she took it away from me, it took her thirty minutes to work her way through the book. Slowly, carefully, and she had a few stumbles (I had to explain to her how putting your finger under the words keeps you from losing your spot!), but she managed to read, to really read her way through 63 pages of appley goodness!

I'm so excited! (And I just can't hide it, you know!)

Oh, I was so happy to see them this morning. They've been upstate all week with their grandma, visiting. I missed them :(

You know about Santa?

How Ana and Evangeline know Santa is fun to pretend, and we can pretend, but it's no more real than pretending princess or "wermaid" or firefighter?

It's definitely the best approach for Ana. Ana very much doesn't like feeling like the butt of the joke, and I'm certain that if she took the typical approach to finding The Truth of Santa she'd feel crushed and convinced that somehow we were all laughing at her the whole time.

You should have heard her response when I inadvertantly giggled the day she announced "I am a happy and loving child" at dinner. "I AM! I AM A HAPPY AND LOVING CHILD!" *glareglareglare* *burst into tears*

Evangeline just about fell out of her chair running to both hug her sister and condemn me. "Don't laugh at MY SISTER. You made her CRY."

*sigh*

So yes. Pretending on Santa? Ultimately, that would've been a bad idea. Dodged a bullet there.