My children amuse me today:

SYDNEY ~ This year, Sydney has decided that the Santa helpers that look like Santa in the mall are not worth her time or conversation. She explained to me a couple weeks ago that these "fake" Santas shouldn't be pretending to be Santa. It's not nice of them. It should be noted that her elf, Buddy, is her personal direct line to Santa. ... And anyway, she is going to see the real Santa on Christmas Eve, when she sneaks downstairs to catch him dropping off her gifts and filling the stockings. She hasn't decided if she'll stay up really late, or if she'll get up really early in the morning. I reminded her that Santa is magic, and that he's super fast, but she still contends that she'll be able to catch him in the act. I'm told that this plan is why we needn't bother with the shopping mall Santa, BUT she tells me today, "I may change my mind or something, you know, when it gets closer to Christmas."
OLIVER ~ Oliver has a new favorite chewy bone that Brian bought him last week. It's brown, smells gamey, but is filled with real deer marrow, or something. He is quite enamored with it. He carries it around with him, seemingly to find a good place to chew it, but once he settles down, he just sets it down, and then takes a nap. He can't possibly be too old for the chewy, but he does seem to be on board with the "It's too beautiful to eat" foodie philosophy. He has been doing this walking-around-with-the-chewy-but-never-chewing-it thing for the last seven days. Also, I should tell you, he whines loudly as he walks around with it. And these treks throughout the house can last up to 20 minutes. Tonight, the deer chewy is right here on the bed with me, while Oliver has gone back downstairs to finagle a treat from Brian. If I don't move it, it'll stay on the bed all night, until tomorrow, when he decides to start the whole cycle again.