yesvirginiasm

I still believe in Santa.

In the Magic, the beauty, the meaning, the giving, the feeling that surrounds this time of year.

Whether you believe and share the Magic of the Man; Santa, Father Christmas, Pierre Noel, or simply share and believe in the magic, the giving, the sharing, the generosity of the season…

It works for me.

I choose to share Santa with my children, to watch the wonder, the magic, the beauty of wishing and believing.  I think all children should have magic in their lives, real or imagined.

I can remember as a child being fascinated with the Macy’s Day Parade and then later, as an adult, being charmed by the story of Virginia and her letter.

It is this paragraph, in particular that strikes a chord deep within my soul:

Yes, VIRGINIA, there is a Santa Claus. He exists as certainly as love and generosity and devotion exist, and you know that they abound and give to your life its highest beauty and joy. Alas! how dreary would be the world if there were no Santa Claus. It would be as dreary as if there were no VIRGINIAS. There would be no childlike faith then, no poetry, no romance to make tolerable this existence. We should have no enjoyment, except in sense and sight. The eternal light with which childhood fills the world would be extinguished.

I fully believe in magic and fairytales (hello.. my blog name) and the beauty and power of people at their best.

So, when I was contacted by someone about the Believe campaign.  I signed right up.  I get nothing out of this.  NO payment. NO compensation. NOTHING.  If you’re looking at it FTC wise.

However, I get the joy, the pleasure, the satisfaction of knowing that I’ve shared with y’all something that I believe strongly in.

Magic, beauty and faith.  The power of childhood innocence and the ability to believe in fairytales unconditionally, to believe that there is magic in our world.

December 11th is National Believe Day:  (from their website)

National Believe Day: December 11th:  “Yes, Virginia” Animated Special – On Friday, December 11th, Macy’s will celebrate the first National Believe Day to recognize and reward acts of kindness and generosity from coast to coast.  Also that day, CBS will premiere a new original animated special called, “Yes, Virginia.” on Friday, December 11, at 8 p.m. ET.

My favorite part of this whole campaign.. Every single Macy’s in the country has a Santa Mailbox.  For every single letter. EVERY SINGLE LETTER. that is placed in a Santa mailbox in a Macy’s store… they will donate $1 ONE DOLLAR to the Make A Wish Foundation, up to ONE MILLION DOLLARS!

I’m taking my kids and their letters to Macy’s.

Shoot.. I’m taking mine and Nate’s letters to Santa up to Macy’s.

I hope that you’ll join me.  I hope that you’ll give a little magic this year.

Like I said.. I get nothing for doing this, for writing this post.  But, you do.  Macy’s has given me TWO $25 gift cards to Macy’s for my readers.

to be entered to win one.

Just tell me what you believe in and how you’ll share some magic with others this Christmas (or, if you don’t do Santa/Christmas.. tell me how you give back to others)

Each comment is an entry.

One entry for the original comment.

One bonus entry if you tweet this giveaway and leave the tweet URL in the comments.

An additional 5 bonus entries if you take your letters to Macy’s and take a picture of y’all putting them in there and post your picture and link to it (twitter, flickr, photobucket. email me.. whatever)

This runs from Dec 8th to  Friday, December 11th, 2009 at 11PM CST.

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Congratulations to our winners!!!

#5 Janelle at Brimful Curiosities

and

#28  Chick Hatchers

I'm a deep-fried Southern belle, married to a cowboy boot wearin', Harley ridin’ Texan Prince Charming. I am the always proud and frequently exhausted mom to two 8th generation Texans My childhood was spent at my Granny's side learning to cook with cast iron, butter and that special southern ingredient -- love Today, I share my passion for food, family and photography with thousands of monthly readers on my blog, A Southern Fairytale. I love cute boots, my Canon camera, belly laughs with friends, the beach, my family and ellipses..."

32 Comments

  2. I can’t wait to someday be able to share a tradition (with my future family) that my aunt & uncle started with their girls when they were young (they are now 24 & 21). Every Christmas morning they would wake their girls up early with the bells from Santa’s sleigh.

    Reply

  6. I love the way your wrote this Rachel. You captured the essence of this season so well. I also believe that every child deserves a little magic, and especially hope to spark inside. It allows their imagination to flourish 🙂

    We will DEFINITELY be dropping off our letters at Macy’s. I’ll have to remember to take a photo. I had no idea they had a Santa mailbox and were running this campaign. Thanks so much!
    .-= Momisodes´s last blog ..Why moms flock to Costco. It’s not just the free samples. =-.

    Reply

  7. My grandmother has passed on many years ago now. For CHristmas I am giving my baby nephew his momma’s sunglasses that my grandmother had saved for many years. When she gave me her cedar chest I kept many of the things she had in it. One of those things were mys sister’s Donald Duck sunglasses. I plan on putting them in Maxie’s stocking Christmas Eve so that someone will find them Christmas morning. They will be from his great grandmother. Remembering family is the best way to celebrate Christmas!

    Reply

  8. My MIL never did Santa with her kids because when she was little she asked for an easy bake oven and didn’t get one but her neighbor did. So she thought santa was unfair and never let her kids believe. I told her that if she even so much as hints anything contrary to my (future) kids about Santa, she’s going down. I feel just the same way and that letter has always made me feel warm and fuzzy. Santa is more than a present giver he’s part of the spirit of the season! My SIL and I have talked about getting MIL an easy bake oven for christmas but we can’t decide whether she’d take it the right way or not.
    .-= Melissa´s last blog ..A Whole Lot of Nothing =-.

    Reply

  12. I believe in doing good for others that’s unexpected. Like the Advent calendar activities I set up for my kids this year. Some things are just for them but other things are in there to help them see outside themselves for awhile.
    .-= Malia´s last blog ..Advent =-.

    Reply

  13. I believe in hot cocoa with whipped cream, and curling up with my kids to watch Polar Express, and shopping with my husband to find the gifts that will bring smiles to the girls’ faces, and doing the unexpected for people who need a lift, and I believe in Christmas cookies. Of course, I believe in the cookies.

    Reply

  15. I believe that there is a lot of good in the World – even on days when that seams unbelievable. I try to give back with my time and talents – something everyone can do if they set their mind to it.
    .-= DesignHER Momma´s last blog ..Stretchy Pants and Topless Shirts – A DesignHER’s guide to Maternity Fashion =-.

    Reply

  16. I love Macy’s, it’s one of my very favorite stores to shop at during the holidays. Reminds me of one of my fav holiday movies Miracle on 34th Street. That is why I believe in the spirit of the holidays, there is so much love and magic all around. i always see people helping others, especially around the holidays. Each little bit helps. Macy’s doing their part to help also, which makes me want to shop there even more. Thanks for the giveaway!

    Reply

  18. awesome, count me in. I love Macy’s. 🙂 Yes, we do celebrate Santa around here, but we tell our kids that St Nicholas was a man who wanted to take care of children as a way of honoring the birth of JESUS. Focusing more on the sprit of what he was doing than whether he REALLY comes down the chimney and whatnot. Much like Virginia, now that I think about it.

    My husband’s family is Dutch so they celebrate the gift part of christmas on st nicks day (dec 5), not christmas anyway. This year we adopted a family from the Salvation Army angel tree and went shopping for them instead of us for our st nicks day celebration. it was really fun! And I think it does a great job of honoring the St Nick/Sinterklaas/Santa Claus tradition. 🙂
    .-= Erin G´s last blog ..For the Love of Thumb =-.

    Reply

  22. Our daughter is 8 and I think this is probably the last year of really “believing” so we are going with it. We love the season for it’s sense of caring and giving so we celebrate family & friends and be sure to give back to our community. The spirit of the holidays is magical and we really want to keep it that way!

    Reply

  23. I believe in the inherent goodness of people – even when my eyes may see something to the contrary. I believe we are what we are created to be and not always what we seem. Sometimes, it’s hard to hold tight to that ideal as I watch the world unfold around me. I try to teach my kids this ideal. I try to live it out daily in my words and actions. This year, my kids and I are going to focus on doing good. Whether it’s something as simple as saving a little water, withholding a harsh word or sending a package overseas to a servicemember. Because I think it is only by doing good that we are able to see the good in others.

    Reply

  24. Every year we “adopt” a family for Christmas using my bonus check from work. We address all the gifts from Santa and have them delivered anonymously. We work with the local foodbank to make it happen.

    I was inspired to start doing this one year when watching a special on Oprah. During the episode Oprah mentioned how someone had come to their door on Xmas with a gift for her when she was younger. She’s never forgotten that Christmas.

    Every child deserves Christmas.

    Reply

  25. I hope this is what you are thinking…we have a pretty small Christmas budget this year, but we put a chunk of money aside for charity…probably toys for tots to help a kid that probably wouldn’t get any Christmas magic see some.
    .-= Krystyn´s last blog ..Slanket Review and Giveaway =-.

    Reply

  27. We don’t do Santa, but my parents always had me and my sister act out a Christmas story for them with Mary and Joseph and baby Jesus. I hope to do the same once my son gets a little older. And, of course, going to the Christmas Eve service at church is a wonderful time that recharges me and gives me hope.

    Reply

  28. We are totally a Santa house. I love the mystery of awe and amazement my kids have with Christmas. And we love to sponsor kids who are less fortunate financially and provide them with an outfit, warm clothes, and a toy or game. It’s tight on our budget, but we still have more than so many others. God blesses us and we can share those blessings with others. Of course, we also focus on the true meaning of Christmas, celebrating the gift of salvation from God through Jesus Christ. Through nothing of our own doing can we be saved, only through His grace and love. For that, we celebrate!
    .-= Chick Hatchers´s last blog ..Eyes in the back of my head =-.

    Reply

  31. It has been so much fun sharing the holiday spirit with my daughter. For years, I despised this time of year and all it brought with it. It was more about making sure we went here or there, and making sure we saw this person and that person. It was NOT not fun and it certianly was not enjoyable. But, since my husband and I have had our daughter – it has all changed. It has become about showing her the magic of Christmas and all that this time of year has to offer.

    There was no look more precious or wondrous as when we plugged the tree in for the first time and saw the twinkling reflection of the the lights in Madaline’s eyes. Or, how she so patiently sits on the kitchen counter while we have been making snacks and cookies to giveaway. We are loving the extra snuggle time on the couch with hot chocolate and popcorn as we watch old school holiday classics. And, it is fun to mark the days off on our advent calendar and share a piece of my own childhood with her.

    Our daughter really had revived the holiday spirit in both my husband and I. =) And, when the the holidays are all said and done, I think it will be safe to say, that perhaps, she, just might be our best gift of all.
    .-= HaB ´s last blog ..Hunting vs. the Snowman =-.

    Reply

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