Opining Opus

The Santa Pause

So I'm watching the SuperBowl, we have company over in a smallish SuperBowl type festivity when my 7 year old daughter looks up at me from the couch and asks, "Dad, does Santa Claus really exist?". Well, I panic and completely blow it 'cause well, I'm not exactly expecting it. I mean really, talk about timing? So I can't help but break into this rather stunned ear to ear grin and ask if maybe she's heard something at school. Well, she says, some of her friends say it's just the parents that do it all. I can't stand it any longer and I laugh out loud ... I have to excuse myself to go to the kitchen because my laughter is going to betray me bigtime. So I ended up ignoring the answer as the subject got changed somehow but still, it's coming back. I'm gonna blow it again, I can't help it. I just haven't actually prepared myself for this at all. What would you do or what did you do already? It really means that your kid has caught you in a rather extensive lie in the end.