Okay, not all of you will have this problem, but for those who do, it’s an incredibly important thing to get straightened out, and time is of the essence. If you’ve got young kids, and you’ve got a chimney cap, you’ve got a problem, and you know what I’m talking about. Santa! “Good grief,” your kids are thinking… “You got that cap put on our chimney to keep out squirrels and raccoons, and NOW, Santa has no way to get in to fill our stockings! What could you possibly have been thinking?” Whoa… talk about poor planning! Well, fear not, because we have some practical tips for coping with chimney caps and Santa when he’s on his way. It’s all going to work out fine, guaranteed.
If Santa knows if you’ve been bad or good… he can get past that chimney cap.
First, restore their trust…
It helps to assure your kids that you actually DID think this exact problem through before having the chimney cap installed. Yes, of course, you did. Then, put the whole Santa-comes-down-the-chimney thing in proper context by asking some questions. What about all the houses that have no chimneys? What about apartments? What about tepees and igloos? Santa finds a way to bring toys to all children, even when their parents have failed to provide the convenience of a chimney. So, when he encounters a chimney cap, he has more than enough magic for entering.
Second, be patient with questions…
Patience with kids’ questions is always a good idea, and this chimney cap dilemma is no exception. They may ask, “Won’t Santa be mad that the easy way in is blocked?” Or, “What if the reindeer fly away while he’s trying to find another way inside?” Here’s where you want to remind them of Santa’s great love for animals. Santa, as it turns out, knows a fair amount about animals and what they need, so he’s onto the fact that in cold weather animals sometimes climb into chimneys for a warm place to sleep. He’s also pretty smart about how that might be a dangerous place for the animals to be, though, so he’ll certainly understand why people who care about animals would put a cap on their chimney. In fact… he may even make a special note of your family’s kind efforts to prevent a chimney mishap with wildlife. As for his reindeer, not to worry, Santa loves and cares for them so well, they will absolutely wait patiently for him to get back up on the roof.
Third, give them a way to be helpful…
Even though the motivation for their concern may be a tad self-centered (namely, “How am I going to get my toys?!”), compliment them on their empathy for Santa’s large and difficult task, bringing toys to so many children in so many places. After all, empathy’s a mighty fine quality, and these questions surely contain at least the seeds for it. Then, ask them to do something nice for Santa, something he would really like… something to let him know they are happy he does what he does for children. What might that be? Well, what Santa loves receiving best of all is pictures. Not just any pictures, mind you, but pictures drawn by kids, and especially animal pictures. If they would make a picture of the backyard animals who might have tried to shelter in your chimney if it were not capped, showing them nestled in safer dens outside, that would be a super special gift for Santa, one that he would surely keep and remember! Knowing how much Santa loves animals he will definitely smile upon the family who looks out for the animals who live in their yard. (By the way, as you’ll soon see, pictures made for Santa are real treasures, made with great love, imagination, and admiration for the receiver.)
Come Christmas the stockings will be overflowing!
So, now you’re good to go…
As we all know… Santa truly is undaunted by mere chimney caps. And, now you are in the clear, having shown that you have everything under control and have not created a Santa-blocking hazard by capping your chimney. And, best of all? Your kids have learned that care and concern for animals is a wonderful quality that good people like Santa have in abundance, and like to see in others. What a perfect—and lasting—gift for all!