I sat down with Noah to help him write his first letter to Santa Claus. Rather than instruct him how to write it, I just wrote down everything he told me to write down, occasionally steering him back on track when he would mentally wander from the task at hand.
Here it is, word for word.
Santa’s Deer,
Ummm, I’ve been a good boy. I cleaned my bed. I ate all my cereal. I did a good job doing cleaning my toys. I did a good job Santa. I be’d nice. I be’d nice. I be’d nice. I’ll be nice. I’m gonna be nice. I have a tractor and you move the thing right there and then the tractor starts making some tractor sounds.
I say please may I please. I just tooted. I did just a good job. Daddy, is that called paper that you’re writing on? I have a little air-o-plane. I put all the cuxchions back on the couch. What’s this? Does Santa say ho ho ho right here? I cleaned the house. My fish and my monkey are my birds because they be nice.
Can I tell him that I shoveled the snow? Grrrrr… dad, can we play that game where you are a mean mouse trying to bite my neck?
That was all I could do. Oh and I never wet my pants, and I know I don’t ever poop in my underwear.
I want a remote control helicopter.
I want a blue one and a red one. The little ones I had upstairs in my closet, I tried it and my dad put new batteries in it, and I tried the remote control, and it turned the thing around like this, and it flied in circles and it crashed into something and then it broke and that’s why I want a new helicopters.
This one kind of looks pretty fancy. I like that one.
When are we going to be done?
And then, I want three helicopters.
I promise I’ll be a good boy this year. Tick-a tick-a tick-a-too. Does helicopters spin around really fast?
I love you Santa. Thank you for sending me that little baby teddy bear when I was a baby at my mom’s house.
Love, Noah
Gosh, I love that kid. I can’t wait for all the other awesomeness the holidays bring.
Dan Pearce, Single Dad Laughing
PS, what’s the funniest thing your child ever put on his list for Santa? I remember as a kid, we used to sit with notebooks in front of Saturday morning cartoons and write down every toy that looked awesome in the commercials. Good times.
When Jett's dad was 6 or 7 he told the first Santa he saw that he wanted Godzilla. His little brother was 4 or 5, and refused to talk to Santa - until Christmas eve, when he said the only thing he wanted was Godzilla!!
Well, Santa had already gotten one Godzilla; and a Pterodactyl for the little guy. So, when I got home I took Jett's dad aside and, since they had been speculating about Santa's authenticity for a couple of years, I told him what his brother had asked for, and explained that they had been right about Santa's identity. I told him how much fun it is to watch kids be so excited on Christmas morning, and wouldn't it be fun if his brother could believe for a while longer. He was so proud of himself for "knowing" who Santa was; and thrilled keep his brother in the dark for a little longer.
Then, after I told him that I already had his Godzilla, I asked him if he wanted to help me be Santa this time - by giving his gift to his brother and taking the Pterodactyl for himself. He immediately agreed, and was so excited to be Santa's helper that, by morning he was bursting at the seams.
Santa was alive and well at our house.
When my Brother was 7 he wrote to Santa that all he wanted for christmas was for mom to RELAX. lol
You translated how he said things perfectly!!! Well done Dan!!
So So stinkin cute! All my 5 year old son asked Santa for, for Christmas was to be rich.......LOL! And boy did he notice Christmas morning when he wasn't flooded with cash! I told him the elfs can't make money and that Santa wasn't "rich" either. He then asked how he gets all the stuff to make the toys then! Kids are and say the cutest things!!
You are an amazing daddy to that little man!!!Why can't more men be like this to their kids?
"I just tooted" LOL!!!! Sure that's important to Santa!
"I just tooted" LOL!!!! Sure that's important to Santa!
This was one of my favorite posts too.
Dan that's awesome! :)
When my daughter was five ( she is twenty now) she asked for a Mcdonalds drive thru window in her bedroom and a robot to clean her room! She never asked for simple normal things....
That's brilliantly awesome! It's wonderful how compeltely OPEN kids are when they're little. Trying to get one to say 'word for word' what might happen to be going through their brains in their teens can be difficult, at best! haha It's a shame that's a skill we tend to weed out over the years sometimes - Although, I guess that could be pretty spastic having a conversation with most adults too :P I've only been following you for what seems like a few short months, but, I enjoy reading your posts. Many make me more aware of things, and they help me keep my mind off my own issues ;) Best of luck to you and yours, from me and mine. ~JP
lol My sister and I did that too!
My son (8) asked for mechanical pencils and tic tacs this year, Love their thought process.
Adorable! When I was little my sister & I used to take the Sears catalog and circle all the toys we wanted Santa to bring. There were usually more circled than not circled.
Oh man I laughed and laughed and then when I read "and I know I don’t ever poop in my underwear." I nearly exploded and I cried a little cause it was so funny. I don't have kids yet and I am so looking forward to this stuff!
Loved it! Little kids are the sweetest! My brother asked for super powers like Hancock this year...I love him so much. I miss the innocence of being little... I wish I'd known what I was missing so I could draw it out for as long as I possibly could!
When I asked my four year old daughter what she wants for Christmas this year, among the huge list of toys, she included "a new house for mommy", "tons of toys for baby sister", and "a new Honda for daddy."
I love that she's only four and already thinks of others! She asked for a baby brother as well, but that's not happening quite yet!
I love that letter! Your son sounds like he's been pretty good.
My boys are 8 and 10. My 8 yr old informed Santa he's on the good list and asked for handcuffs so he could "restrain his brother from wrestling him." His brother said it was a hard year & he did the best he could, but he's only human. He also told Santa not to call him between the hours of 6:30 am and 3:30 p.m. "for minor reasons." He told me that's because he's a minor.
Kids are put on this earth partly to amuse us. I'm convinced of that.
My 4-year-old asked for a rocket ride to the moon with 2 seats so I could come along. : )
Also, a little sister.
I know which one I'd rather go shopping for!
This is priceless!! Eight years ago my son, then 6 and my daughter, then 4 asked for a baby brother for Christmas. My daughter insisted that they had them on sale at Kmart. They even asked Santa for one. They were very disappointed that there was no baby brother under the tree. But when my second son was born in August, they were both convinced he was "theirs"...a delayed Christmas present from Santa. : )
This is too good. Love it! It is so funny how quickly they can change their train of thought. My son just turned three today, and he's not quite as advanced as Noah but I might have him "write" a letter to Santa, too. That could be really fun.
Great idea.
Cheers,
Tia
WAY too freaking cute!! Love it! He sounds very much like my 3 yr old. Totally talkative, tons to say, can't stay on track but definitely comes back around...even if it's days later lol. I hope he gets those helicopters! :)
A few years ago while telling me what she wanted for christmas, my daughter stopped and said "I know what Daddy wants for Christmas." I asked what they was. She said, with childish innocence, "More beer!" She was right of course, so I asked what Mommy would want for Christmas. Again with logic only a child bears "Milk!" Guess you know who the drinker is at our house! LOL!
When I was younger I wanted a "horse on a stick"
My family's tradition is writing letters to Santa on Christmas Eve, and putting them in the stocking for him to find. Kind of like leaving cookies and milk out, which we never did. It kept the holiday from becoming a massive "me festival", because our letters were more along the lines of "thanks for coming by" instead of "I want this and this and that and this too".
I can't wait until Christmas Eve to help my 3-year-old boy write his letter (last year he just drew a picture since he wasn't old enough to grasp the concept)! I love the way their minds work at this age!
I have never met Noah but I love him.
Great letter!! When I was a kid we'd lay on the floor pen and paper in hand with the Sears toy book catalog (before you had to buy it) and write down loooong lists on wishes. It wasn't until I was much older that I wondered why Santa needed to know the price, page number and item number! LOL
reading some of these comments has made me a little sad... In Canada, Santa always writes back. Answers all your questions and everything. You know, the usual "how are the reindeer" etc.
I can't wait until my son is old enough to dictate a letter to Santa. Hoping this year I won't be alone in front of the tree at 5 in the morning! ha!
My daughter (age 9) asked for an "American Girl doll .. with shoes, 2 baby dolls (so her little sister can have one too) and a REAL rabbit." This Santa isn't going to the pet shop anytime soon, but how cute is this that she asked for something for herself and her younger sister??? I'm in awe of my oldest right now. Noah's letter is precious, I love the way its like a quick view into his world!
My 7-year-old daughter is a car nut; her Christmas wish is "to sit in a slug bug."
love love love it! my kids asked for coffee sleeves two years in a row. yup, those little paper things that go on coffee cups. one year it was the ONLY thing they asked for!
I wasn't blessed with children, so it was a real treat to read about Noah's first letter to Santa and all the other experiences from the other readers. Thank you for sharing :)
My kids hate Santa, they refuse to do anything related to Santa. But we have a good time anyway
My daughter is 7 and well thinks Santa is a bank. Here in Panama (Central America) each store issues a christmas catalogue and they distribute it to the schools. So Adry (my daughter - Adrianna) comes home and diligently sits on the couch and takes out a BIG BLACK felt pen and goes at it. And I sat next to her and she check EVERY SINGLE TOY. Finally, I notice she ticks one she already has - so I say to her "Adry, you already have this one" She answers very seriously "I need another one" I walk away, thinking - I've created a monster!
My 9 yr old actually asked for jammies this year! What kid asks for Jammies?
OMG best Santa Letter EVER dictated! :) Loved it!
Thanks so much for sharing
Your wonderfully blessed to have each other! My son's now 18 and it seems like just yesterday he was a bright & shiny toddler. Your blog's my lovely reminder of those glorious days of innocence. Thank-you.
My family was extremely religious growing up. Part of that was praying a blessing over every meal. My brother, clever kid that he is, prayed regularly (over lunch, dinner, or bedtime) that he'd really like "a set of Star Wars Legos. The one with the X-Wing fighters and the one with battle droids. And please bless the food. Amen."
Guess who got the Legos he prayed for?
I remember searching through endless catalogs, mostly the big Sears Christmas Edition catalog, circling just about every toy I saw. No kids for me, but sometimes I really think about all the fun times I'm missing especially around this time of year.
my girl asked for Hannah Montana tickets. And ham. (told her I could help out with the ham)
He is TOO CUTE! I love that you transcribed this for him. Gonna bring some groans and laughs (and embarrassment) in his teen years!
That's so sweet! Thanks for sharing :)
Awwww that was so cute.
Haha! When I was younger my mom told my little brother that if he wasn't good he would get nothing but sticks and coal in his stocking...It backfired and my brother actually ASKED for coal. Christmas morning I snuck down before everyone to check things out and found my brothers stocking full of coal and sticks. I felt so awful for him I threw all of it out the back door...so scared he would feel awful he had been bad enough for Santa to fill a WHOLE stocking with coal and sticks. Needless to say, my brother was devestated and my mom was completely confused when my brother has an empty stocking lol!
I love how good toilet training habits are looked at as good behavior. I hope Santa brings Noah those remote control helicopters because he deserves them just based on his cuteness factor!
Love Noah's letter! He is too cute!
My oldest daughter wants more princess stuff and another baby sibling. My son hasn't decided what he wants yet or started to write his letter. My youngest is a year old and is happier with the box.. lol
My son's 12 year old Christmas list would cost $1500 dollars. Of course, he now knows that Santa is picky and choosy about what s/he'll buy. It never gets old though, having your kids tell you what they want Santa to bring, "hint, hint".
I am 54 now but I remember when I was 17. I had a little sister who was 5 at the time. I took her to see Santa that year on Christmas Eve Day. Mother and I both thinking this was the last event we needed to take care of before Christmas.When Santa asked the usual ? "What do you want for Christmas this year?" She quickly declared that she wanted this special doll that I had never heard about. I rushed her home- no cell phones back then-and asked my Mom if she had heard anything about this doll. She checked her list and nothing. So, we sat with my sister and tried to act calm as we asked her why she hadn't mentioned the doll to us.Her very logical response was" (Whatever) doll is what I want the most and Santa was the only one who needed to know."
Needless to say there was a whole group of us hunting down this special doll. Not easy in a small town where the sidewalks rolled up at 6 PM but we snagged one! Thank you for bringing that memory back.lol
My youngest daughter told Santa she wanted all of pages 710 and 711 of the Christmas Wish Book...that's why I don't let her see it anymore. She would circle items she wanted...or highlight them in the preferred colors. Pink meant she really wanted it, Yellow meant she really wanted it but not as much as she wanted the pink ones. This year both my girls completed their letters to Santa and each included items they would like him to bring the baby, which was very sweet of them. But the best thing they asked for this year was for me to have a vacation, lol. I love my kids!
My youngest wrote a letter to Santa this year. It went something like this:
Dear Santa, I love you. I like all your elves they seem nice. I love Mrs. Clause's hat. I can't wait to see you. I love you. Love Amanda.
After she wrote it she turned to me and asked, Do you think this will be enough? I did all I could not to laugh. It was just too precious.