End of an era

Two weekends ago, Faith lost her fourth tooth. We forgot to put it under her pillow for a few nights and before we got around to it, she asked the question.

"Mom, is the Tooth Fairy real?"

Great. And George was nowhere in sight to field this one. In classic avoidance mode, I said:

"What do you think?"

"Come on Mom. Just teeelll me."

"OK. No the Tooth Fairy is not real."

"So do you put the money under my pillow?"

"Yes."

She didn't seem too devastated by this revelation.

"Mom, can I get paper money for my next tooth?"

So, that was last week. Tonight, we were driving home from Sparks, when she pipes up from the back seat, "Mom, is the Easter Bunny real?"

This time, she had to wait to get home so George could be the one to destroy her childhood illusions instead of me. Then, of course, the next question out of her mouth, "Is Santa real?"

Great...in one week we've lost the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny, and Santa Claus. We are eagerly awaiting the time when Blake is old enough to believe in them so we can get a little magic back. And Faith is more than happy to play along. But she did ask whether she could say thanks to us at Christmas instead of Santa. She may not have Santa anymore, but she does have manners.