The stockings were "hung by the chimney with care," but what to fill them with? Since our four children grew up and got married, Santa doesn't stop at our house anymore. Finally inspiration struck at last: Disneyland! A family trip where we could all be together in the "happiest place on earth." My husband gave his nod of approval but then the big question hit us. How would we present such a gift? In essence we were telling them, "Here is your Christmas present, but you can't open it until June." To create the proper setting, presentation was going to be everything!

After much thought, we decided to hold the First Annual Erickson Christmas Party as the atmosphere in which to present our surprise. The party itself was a huge success! Even my dear daughter-in-law who hates to cook brought an entry for the bake-off. The games were fun, the white elephant gift grab was entertaining and the mood was festive. As we caroled together, I insisted that everyone choose a "day" to sing solo while I played "The Twelve Days of Christmas" at the piano. It's a selfish family tradition because I'm the only one who enjoys it but they moaned and groaned all the way through the long song. Finally, as I hit the last chord it was time for The Big Surprise.

My dear hubby told everyone to sit down while he passed out pencils and paper. An undertaker couldn't have been more somber. He gave thanks that we were so blessed, and told each couple to write down the name of their favorite charity. This year, he explained, instead of being on the receiving end of the Christmas celebrations, they would be on the giving end. Instead of receiving gift from us, they could make a donation to their favorite charity and we would match the donation. They were stunned! Christmas was still 2 weeks away, and they had just been robbed of the anticipation of looking forward to their presents for this year. However, they dutifully took pencil in hand and wrote out the names of their favorite charities.

As they were writing, I had the grandsons unroll a giant banner that read, "DISNEYLAND." However, it took quite awhile to for them to react with any excitement. For all they knew, this could be yet another prank. We explained that, while we would still match any amount they chose to give to their favorite charity, we were also all going to Disneyland!

And so we did! I could go on about granddaughter Emmie's delight at meeting Snow White, the boy cousins bragging how they weren't afraid of the "big" rides anymore, and the magic in the eyes of the baby girls during the fireworks display. But I'm saving that for my next book!