Holiday greetings from the bloggers...

A quick editorial from Daddy. Last night was a party we held for Addie’s fifth birthday. In 2010 and 2011, she was lucky enough to get a visit from Santa at her birthday parties and she’s been talking about how she can’t wait to see her “special friend” all year. Santa was played beautifully by her great uncle, Neil, who passed away in February. This year, Mary Kate O’Connell was sweet enough to fill in as Mrs. Claus, claiming Santa was nursing a bad cold, but that he sends his love.

About ten minutes into their conversation, Addie leapt from Mrs. Claus’s lap, ran to me and shouted,

ADDIE: DADDY! SANTA READS MY BLOG!

I assume most of the people who read this blog know me and my girls and were even lucky enough to have known Uncle Neil. So I don’t have to explain how Christmas was HIS TIME. He played Santa for the Buffalo Philharmonic Orchestra every year with Marvin Hamlisch. He bought presents for every one of my siblings, cousins, children, nieces and nephews. Addie was telling me that Santa Claus reads her blog, but to me, it was a sign that Neil is still keeping an eye on things.

The first time Santa visited, he left a book for Addie that included a recording of The Night Before Christmas. He’s using his Santa Voice, but it’s unmistakably Uncle Neil. I’m crying thinking about it now.

Thank you to everyone who reads this blog. Whether you celebrate Christmas or not, I wish for you the kind of joy Uncle Neil felt whenever he donned the Santa suit. I wish for you the kind of pure wonder Addie felt when talking to Mrs. Claus about Rudolph. And I wish for you the kind of love I feel when I listen to the following. Merry Christmas, everyone!