Dear Mom the cookies smell great

Dear Mom the cookies smell great

As Christmas approaches Claire is busy making everything perfect for Santa Clause. She has drawn him a picture. She has made him a special note. After much consternation over the subject she has decided we need to put the note over the top of the cookies to make sure he sees it. She has insured our stocking are hung. She has made special care we have fresh milk and carrots in the fridge. I suggested we have some carrots for dinner and she insisted we need to save them for the reindeer. I am not completely sure that is her sole motivation, carrots have never been her favorite, but it is Christmas so we can go with it. She asked me, “Daddy if I have some cereal and milk will we have enough milk left for Santa?”

I assured her there was plenty of milk for Santa. I am not sure, but I think for a minutes she was contemplating using water on her cereal. She kept glancing at the faucet as if she were going over her options. Being a big girl now she can pour her own milk over her cereal. I only get the half-gallon size containers. She hesitated several times and analyzed the container to make sure she had not used too much. This would have been less funny if it was not a full container. But it was, in fact, brand new. I guess she suspects Santa is very thirsty.

The one thing that has been missing is cookies. Starting about a week ago she started suggesting we make cookies for Santa. I had not picked up ingredients at the store last time and decided we needed to put it off a bit.
“We need to make sure we have cookies for Santa!” She exclaimed. She is obviously going to grow up to be a big tipper.
“Don’t worry honey, we will have plenty of cookies for Santa.”

As she goes over her list she keeps coming back to the one thing that she cannot check off yet. When are we going to make cookies? I suppose I should have just bit the bullet and jumped in the car and went and bought some more eggs. This would have been easier. But, now there was a line in the sand and I though patience was a good lesson here.

I picked out a date and a time and kept reminding her that was when we were going to make the cookies. There were ornaments to make, Christmas cards to make, more decorations to put up, but it all came back to the cookies. “Can we make the cookies now?” She would ask at the end of every project, or sometimes in the middle of one.

“What day is on the calendar?” I would ask, realizing she knew exactly what day it was, but was just interested in testing to see if I remembered.

Now it is the day before Christmas Eve and I have it all planned out. The ingredients sit on the counter. The cookie sheets sit on the stove top ready to be greased. Now I just wait for the little girl to come home from visiting her Mother. I imagine we can do the cookies then do clean up and it will likely be time for a bath. Oh how I wish my kitchen did not have carpet. It is funny but it is taking great willpower not to make the cookies myself. So, first I need patience for my daughter’s nagging, now I need patience to wait for her to get home. This whole process is trying my patience. When I planned this I did not realize the lesson in patience was for me.

Love Mike