When Deb and I were still newly-married and my sister’s kids were little, “real Christmas” was at my parents (“Real Christmas only happens at Grandma and Grandpa’s” proclaimed my sister). One Christmas Eve, when our niece & nephew were old enough to understand Santa, my sister announced that it was IMPERATIVE that presents from Santa be wrapped in white tissue paper, because when she & I were kids, that’s how Santa presents appeared under the tree. Had she brought tissue wrapping paper from California? No. 🙄 Off went Deb & I in search of paper. On Christmas Eve afternoon. (We found it at Target. Which was a messy madhouse, no surprise.) And then we spent that night, after the kids were in bed, wrapping presents. (My sister was with the kids. I forget what my bil was doing during all this. I’m pretty sure he thought the whole thing was silly.) So Christmas morning, the kids are delighted with all the Santa presents. And our mother is confused. Why are they in white tissue paper? Remember, Mom? (says my sister) We always had Santa gifts in tissue paper. Um, no, says my mother, we had them one year because I waited too long to buy Christmas wrapping paper, and the next couple years because I bought too much and had it left over.

Oh.

Regular wrapping paper was fine after that.