S/O: Santa believers, what do you do to make the magic 'real'?

[Terra]

So for those of us that do Santa, let's share! I'm always up for new ideas. What do you do to make the magic real? Do you leave an 'evidence' that Santa was there?? Any fun Santa traditions that you do?

Also here are a couple of websites in case you don't know about them. One is a photo site. You upload a photo of your tree/house and put Santa in it [$10 for 3 downloadable pictures], although you can do this one I'm sure if you have good editing software which I do not!
http://www.capturethemagic.com/Start.aspx

The other is a video that you can have made [free] to be sent to your email for your children to view, from Santa. My kids LOVED this one last night!
http://www.portablenorthpole.tv/home

Now I haven't done anything too out of the ordinary myself but would love to this year. Typically we just do the milk and cookies thing.

My good friend in Ohio will leave sleigh tracks outside [which of course looks really great when there is snow!] No such luck in Florida though

[ajane]

We have a few things we do every year, but we try not to ever get in a position where something that isn't very easy is expected. Like when DD1's preschool class handed out "reindeer food" to sprinkle on the lawn. Really? We have to remember to do that also?!?!?! And, what if it is all still there in the morning? Well, thankfully that stuff REALLY blends into the grass/ground.

Now it is kind of funny b/c we live in a wooded area so we have TONS of deer. Our first winter here the kids looked out and saw "rein"deer tracks all over the front yard. They were so excited! The next year we had no snow, but they found a lot of "rein"deer poop all over the ground. DD1 said it looks similar to "just deer poop." I agreed.

Sometimes they have us leave out carrots for the reindeer. Sometimes they forget, but remember in the morning. OF course. But, we say enough people probably left something for them or Santa shared his cookies. We always leave out cookies and milk.

On Christmas Eve we go to mid day mass, then come home for appetizers and dinner. After dinner the kids get changed in their Christmas pj's, we make hot cocoa and drive around in the car checking out all the holiday lights. Then, back home to a crackling fire, they open gift(s) from out of town relatives that we won't be with on Christmas day, then we all sit on the couch and read "Twas the Night Before Xmas." Then it is bedtime.

[stevensmom]

we did the phone call from santa last year...don't remember who it was through.

[Samandy]

We don't do anything special, but when I was a kid we always sprinkled flour on the floor to catch Santa's tracks. This also works for the Easter Bunny. lol

[MommyToTwoPrinces]

Nothing special just yet since the boys are only almost 2 years old and 7 months!

[Fishie Kisses]

last year I did the "naughty or nice" videos from Santa for my older 2. They LOVED it. We bake cookies for Santa and leave them out with hot chocolate. This year DS1 can write, so we will probably have him leave Santa a note.

Growing up my parents would make boot prints with the soot from the fire place (flour) but we have a gas fireplace that won't produce any ash, so it wouldn't be realistic lol

[MamaNae]

We do the video from Santa, they get a huge kick out of that.

If it's snowing I bring some in and put it in the living room so the carpet is damp in the morning, I put glitter on the front lawn (because when Santa's sleigh takes off it leaves some elf dust behind)

[z2akids]

We to sleigh tracks when there is enough snow for them to work. We leave out milk, cookies and carrots. The reindeer leave 1/2 eaten carrots on the lawn. Glitter and flour are wonderful for leaving a trail of footprints through the living room.

We have a special key that hangs on the outside of our front door for Santa to use to get in the house since we don't have a fireplace. He usually leaves it by the cookie plate when he is done.

[abunchoflemons]

I have heard some leave cookies & milk & someone eats & drinks some to make it look as if santa was there. A gift from santa not family members. I grew up not doing it but my daughter (older) got into it & went tyo see santa at mall.

[tusheez]

We love Santa and we go all out! We read the stories, sing songs, bake cookies, leave them with a glass of milk, and leave corn for the reindeer. We have the Elf on the shelf too. We have fun with it. My 2 older DS's know that there really is no Santa but they love playing along for DD. They understand the meaning of Christmas. They use to love when we went to mass and someone would ring bells like it was Santas sleigh.