Cici lost one of her baby teeth yesterday. It's the third one she's lost so far, but it was one of the top front ones, so it's the first time she's had the classic "All I Want for Christmas" hillbilly grin. So, last night as I was putting her to bed, we had the following conversation.
Dadam: Now don't forget to put your tooth under your pillow, or the Tooth Fairy won't come.
Cici: Oh, yeah, the Tooth Fairy! [pause; then] . . . Dad, is the Tooth Fairy real?
Dadam: Well what are you talking about of course the Tooth Fairy is real I mean honestly.
Cici [smiling slyly]: Well, Dad, it's just that I'm a little older now, and I think that the Tooth Fairy might not be real.
Dadam: Well then, where does the money come from?
[Cici points at me.]
Dadam: What?
Cici: From the parents!
Dadam: Well, why would you think that?
Cici: Because fairies aren't real. They're, like, you know . . . a fantasy.
Dadam: Well, sweetie, only you can decide for sure whether you believe in something or not. You just have to look inside yourself and think about whether you think it's true or not. So in the morning, why don't you look under your pillow and see how you feel then?
Cici: Okay, Dad.
Okay, so it's not exactly "Yes, Virginia, There is a Santa Claus," but I did my best.
Anyway, this morning Cici found that the Tooth Fairy had left a dollar under her pillow, and when she showed it to Ruby she said, "Look, Ruby! Look what the Tooth Fairy brought me!"
And then she turned to me and winked.
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