On Christmas Morning

As parents know, Christmas Eve is an angst-inducing night, and as usual it was for Paul and me again this year (and Paul's sudden attack of nausea did not help). So at about 1:00 am we were finally able to turn in and get some sleep. Or so I thought. At 2:00 am, Micah was at my bedside telling me it was too difficult to sleep and could he sleep in our room? Because that would probably help.

I conceded as long as he would be quiet and still and go back to sleep. But it was not in the cards. Micah wanted to tell me about dreams that he had and what he thought he would get for Christmas and anything else that crossed his mind. Periodically I would tell him to shush and go back to sleep. But the sheer excitement of it all prevented that.

Finally at about 5:00 am I told Micah to just go to his room and not come out again until I told him it was ok. I feel confident that he never went back to sleep because at 7:00 am when I went to give them the ok to come down to see what Santa had brought, he and Chase were sitting at the top of the stairs anxiously awaiting. A bit like eager puppies, I would say. They practically killed one another racing down the steps to be first to go through the stash.

The conversation that followed:
Chase: "Look, Micah, Santa brought me a remote control motorcycle just like you always wanted!"
Micah: "Yeah, and he brought me a Hot Wheel's set just like you always wanted!"
(A few moments passed as they eyed one another's toys.)
Me: "Um, maybe you guys should switch sides?"
(They did, and were much happier).

I asked Micah if he saw everything Santa had brought during the night while he was wandering. "Well, not EVERYTHING" he said. I asked if he told Chase what Santa brought (last year it was Chase who got up in the middle of the night and played with the toys - so he knew he was not allowed to get up - I made it very clear to him). Micah's answer: "Well, not EVERYTHING."

Oh well. Merry Christmas to all.