Column: Just Add Water

Last week my family and I decorated our Christmas tree with homemade ornaments and candy canes.

My kids discovered their stockings later that night and hung them from the fireplace mantel.

As the hall-decking continued, my 12-year-old daughter, Emma, began baking sugar cookies. The aroma of fresh-baked cookies is still lingering. So, it seems that the holiday season has officially begun.

There are advent calendars to help us count down the days until Christmas.

I even appreciate the not-so-nice chores. After all, they serve as a reminder of the holiday season. But there are times, amidst the hustle and bustle of these chores, that I find my kids gazing up at the tree with a dreamy look in their eyes. That's when I remember that this is also a season for wishes, hopes and dreams.

As a little girl, I spent my pre-Christmas hours writing and rewriting letters for Santa Claus. I would curl up on our family room couch and find my inspiration in the humongous Sears catalog.

As I flipped through the toy section, I imagined the elves in their workshop crafting Barbies, Easy-Bake Ovens and Etch A Sketches. I wondered how they did it, but knew that with the magic of Christmas, anything was possible.

Every year, my kids get some of their ideas from television commercials. It usually starts in October. I will hear a cry from the other room to "get in here quick." As I rush from making dinner to this "emergency," I realize that the emergency is just a TV commercial. And despite my haste, I usually miss whatever it was my kids were trying to show me.

This year, my kids started using the Internet to search out the hottest toys. I know because I was "cc'd" on e-mails all three kids sent to Santa. I am simply amazed at the progress Christmas magic has made over the years.

This morning, before school, my 11-year-old son brought me a letter. It was a Santa letter written in his nicest cursive. I was impressed. I had given up on my kids -- especially my son -- when it came to sending snail mail.

As I read through the requests he made for the big guy, I realized that Christmas magic doesn't just happen on Christmas, but on other days, too. You just have to open your eyes a little and look for it.