by Charlie Brooks posted in Parenting

It finally happened: My kids found their Christmas presents. It was a complete accident ? they were looking for something else and forgot that there is one room in our house they aren?t supposed to go into during the holiday season. My son found the gift he wanted most and was overjoyed?until I started yelling.
I admit, I could have handled the situation way better than I did. If I had played it cool, I probably could have made the kids understand why we value surprise on Christmas. They might even have walked away with early gifts. Instead, I went through the following stages of parental panic:
1) Cluelessness: ?Oh look?they found a new toy. I wonder where that came from" Why, that almost looks like?wait a minute?? 2) Fury: My voice went from calm to raging in the blink of an eye. Their smiles transformed into frowns as I asked where they had found the toy and why they were in a room they weren?t supposed to enter. I kinda felt like Bluebeard confronting his wife.
3) Damage Control: I got a sick feeling as I realized they had found a toy my son had asked Santa to deliver. I quickly said, ?Do you remember when you asked Santa for this, how I leaned over and whispered something to him" That was me telling him we already bought that for you.?
Here?s the kicker, though: my son didn?t remember asking for this from Santa. But I?m a parent, and that means I?ve got to twist myself in circles trying to maintain the Santa myth, even ...