If Santa had wrapped his own gifts, I wouldn’t be telling this. But, as we all know, he places his gifts under the tree and in your stockings with nothing but a smile. That’s how you know it’s from Santa. Am I right, or am I right?
Go back to Abilene with me. The year is 1985 and our boys are 4 and 2. We’re broke. (Okay, so that’s true of every year that decade, but stay that’s another article.) Matt is totally in to Santa Clause and he wants walkie talkies. Scott couldn’t care less, but he likes to hear himself say, “wawkie wawkie”. Fortunately, I have a rebate coupon from Toys R Us. Got’em early and got ‘em hidden in a paper sack in the top of the closet. No long lines. No rain checks. No problem! I smile and nod approvingly as people ask Matt what he wants Santa to bring him. Same answer. It’s all about the walkie talkies.
Years earlier, my parents, sister and I established a tradition of stuffing stockings/grocery sacks. Throughout the year, we look for interesting inexpensive little things to amaze and delight each other on Christmas morning. Even my dad had fun with it. I smile even now as I think of the cases of duct tape, electrical tape and masking tape I’ve collected from him over the years.
To this day, it’s a touchy subject, so suffice it to say that we disagreed on where to spend the holidays that year. My parents lived in Austin, 4 hours south. Drew’s dad lived in Sherman, 4 hours east. I had the only grandkids on my side of the family. We hadn’t been with Drew’s dad for Christmas morning in a while, so we decided to take Santa on the road. If you have ever done that, then you know the challenges of explaining how Santa will find your family, and then hiding the unwrapped presents in the car. I loaded up the boys while Drew packed the minivan.
Now that I have time to reflect on the experience, I have to admit that I was a bit smug about my shopping victory. Mothers would ring their hands over the Cabbage Patch scramble. It’s the only thing their little girl had asked for. Hmmm, too bad. I already have the boys’ gift from Santa. Did that back in October. Coupon. Maybe that’s why that trip from Abilene to Sherman to Austin and back is now what we refer to as The Bermuda Triangle.
We arrived in Sherman Christmas Eve. As Drew was bringing in our luggage, I saw him unload the sack of stocking stuffers for my family, but I didn’t see…
”Drew! Where are the presents from S-A-N-T-A?” Confusion mixed with exhaustion produced the irritation in his voice as he replied,
“I don’t know. Where did you put them?”
“They’re in the paper sack that was sitting by the front door.”
I’ll save you the details, but we threw the kids at Papa Mac and ran out the door. This was Sherman twenty years ago. They had Piggly Wiggly and Gibson’s and neither one had any walkie talkies. McKinney’s shopping options were even fewer and Allen wasn’t even on the map. We drove to the Toys R Us at Central and Parker in Plano. Toys R Us on Christmas Eve. Let that image sink in for a second while Drew and I run around the store and find the last set of walkie talkies. Expensive, grown-up walkie talkies. No coupon. Thank goodness for Bubba’s Beer and Bait shop, because we realized around midnight that we didn’t have batteries, either.
The day after Christmas, we drove to Austin. As we unloaded the van, I had a familiar sinking feeling in the pit of my stomach. “Drew! Where is the sack of stocking stuffers?!” My dad walked out to the garage just in time to see me burst into tears and tell him we’d be back in an hour or so.
At least this time we were shopping the After Christmas sales. Drew didn’t seem to think that was such a bonus. He gets a little testy when he doesn’t find a parking place within the first hour or so. What happened next was right out of Gone with the Wind. Drew stepped out of the van, raised his fist to the air and vowed, “As God as my witness…I will never spend Christmas on the road again!” (Good news. I found these little nifty rubber traps to fit over the drain in the sink to catch hair and forks and stuff.)
Over the years, he’s modified that comment a bit. Grandparents were invited to join us, but before we went anywhere, we did our own thing at home.
Cost of food for additional family members - $57.00
Increase in water and utility bills - $42.00
Celebrating Christmas under your very own tree – Priceless!
p.s. Need any tape?
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