SOMETIMES YOU JUST KNOW SANTA IS REAL

Christmas time in the Skinner home has always been a very special time for me. So many great memories. As a kid, we would always spend Christmas Eve with my grandparents on my dad’s side. Visiting and playing with cousins, eating lots of food and of course, the presents! We would leave late in the evening, and I can remember watching the sky through the back windshield of the car, hoping for a glimpse of Santa crossing through the clouds. We would get home just in time to catch the 10 o’clock news and see where Santa was on the globe. We changed into our pajamas and always left out the traditional milk and cookies for the big guy and hurried off to bed.

Growing up, we didn’t have a lot of money. Most things we had were used or hand-me-downs from other family members. We were happy though. One year my brother and I were getting suspicious that maybe Santa was not real. We didn’t tell anyone and just kept it between us. Surely, we would find proof. We had our usual traditional Christmas Eve activities and awoke very early on Christmas day and rushed to the living room to see what the fake Santa had left us. To our amazement, there were two brand new bicycles! A 10-speed for my brother and a 5-speed for me. We just knew that Santa had to be real because mom and dad surely couldn’t afford to buy something that expensive. Time moved on. We grew up, our family began having families and the big Christmas get-togethers vanished as they all began new family traditions of their own.

My wife, LeeAnn and I moved to Seguin in December of 2012. We arrived just in time to see Christmas in Seguin. We soaked it all in! The Sip and Stroll, the Christmas parade of lights and the lighting of Central Park. We fell in love immediately! Only one thing was missing. Santa should arrive on an antique fire truck. We made it a goal that the next year, Santa would arrive in Seguin on the fire department’s antique fire truck. Our staff came through and got the old truck running. They taught me how to drive it. It’s not as easy as you think. There are several sequences you must go through to get it started and drive it. The day finally came, and my wife and I had the privilege to drive Santa and Mrs. Clause in the parade of lights. What a treat! We have kept up the tradition and drive Saint Nick into town every year on the old fire truck. We love Christmas in Seguin!