That dreaded day finally arrived...
A couple of weeks ago Emma came upstairs and announced she needed to speak with me in private. I calmly agreed we could talk right after I got the other kids their breakfast, but inside I was freaking out a little, "What's going on now!? Why does she want to talk in private?! Will I know what to say?!" We sat down on my bed and she sheepishly began, "Mom, is the Easter Bunny real?"
INSTANT sigh of relief on my part. I mean I thought she was going to tell me that her little boyfriend kissed her or she found a strange lump on her body or she snuck out of the house the other day. Whew! I can handle a little Easter Bunny confessional, namely because I know him very well...(hee, hee).
So I said, "What do you think Honey? Do you think he is real?" Emma - "Well, I want to believe he's real, but I was in your room the other day, (snooping) and I found this stuff with Easter stuff inside, (yes, the box in my closet that I didn't hide very well - in truth it was an open box in my closet, on the floor, with a blanket thrown over the top of it - nice going Mom)...
Emma continues - "I wasn't trying to find Easter stuff, but I did and now I'm wondering if you and Dad are the ones who..." She trails off but looks up at me with a curious wonder.
Mom - "Mike you'd better come in here!" At this point in the story Mike is just as curious and panicked as I was but he's been outside wondering just what in the world Emma has on her mind. He was probably pacing too.
We all sat down and had a very logical discussion about bunnies who leave eggs, fairies who collect teeth, and yes, even the beloved Santa Claus. She took it well, very well in fact. Especially when we announced that now she could be the Easter Bunny's helper.
At one point in the conversation she boldly stated she wanted to give us each $20 for all the fun things we've given her in the past while working under the false identities of E.B., Tooth Fairy and Santa.
Mom - "Oh no honey, you don't pay us for those gifts, it's just something parents like to do for their children and when you're a mommy you'll do it for your kids."
Dad - "But IF we were settling any "debts", it was a lot more than forty bucks!"
