oh, oh, it's magic

Joe and I were both blessed with pretty ideal childhoods. I've been thinking a lot lately about those childhoods, trying to identify the things that made them special, and figuring out how to make sure that they happen for our boys.

My very favorite aspect of a happy childhood is magic. To a child, the world is full of magic. All of the things that adults take for granted, like electricity, sprouting seeds, flying birds and especially the sorcery of the kitchen, seem highly mysterious and mystical to our little ones. One of the tragedies of growing up is that we tend to lose this sense of wonderment and excitement over the workings of our world. Fortunately, one of the most beautiful blessings of parenthood is the opportunity to snatch back that sense of magic as we once again get to witness life from the perspective of our children.

Much of the magic of childhood is inherent, that inborn sense of imagination that makes everything sparkle with possibility. But a thoughtful grown-up can add an additional element of magic to everyday life. Most of us already do this on special occasions, encouraging belief in Santa Claus, the Easter Bunny and the Tooth Fairy. But the belief in regular fairies, and pixies and elves can bring this fun to everyday life. It was following up on that idea that lead us to discover that we've got a brownie living in our house.

Brownies are magical little creatures that inhabit the homes of lucky families and help out in tasks around the house. One morning, you might discover that a lost toy has been found and put back in it's place, that a mess has been cleaned up, or that a special treat has been left out for your family. Brownies are very sneaky and only do their work at night, and they love to be rewarded with porridge and honey. I had a brownie living in my house when I was little, and when I told the boys about it, we decided to make a brownie trap to see if we have one living with us.

We dipped up a tiny bowl of porridge (steel-cut oatmeal) with cinnamon and honey and left it out on the counter with a dusting of flour around it. In the morning, the bowl was empty and there were teeny tiny footprints in the flour. Since then, we've all been trying to be tidier, because we don't want to leave too much work for our brownie, and we're always looking for signs that s/he's been up and about at night.

My Grandma Lou taught me about another kind of magical creature. They're called Trixie Pixies and they come out at Christmas time. They work for Santa Claus by watching the little girls and boys they're assigned to and reporting on the naughtiness/niceness they find. They also stick around for a little while after Christmas to make sure that the kiddies are taking good care of their gifts. If they find that the toys are being abused, they'll take them back to Santa Claus. Grandma Lou had (actually, she still does have) six Trixie Pixies at her house and we always raced to see who could be the first to find them all whenever we came for a visit. Finding a Trixie Pixie is no easy feat. They hide well and they're always moving to new spots at night. We happen to have three living at our house. This one jumped up into our hanging fern last night, which seems to be an ideal spot from which to monitor the goings on in the living room.

We're always on the lookout for good ideas on how to make life magical. Do you make sure that the tooth fairy leaves a little trail of glitter, or build fairy houses out of rocks and sticks in your back yard? Or maybe you make sure that Santa Claus leaves coal dust footprints? Please share!