When Katie Found Out About Santa, Part 1

My daughter Katie has always been precocious. Even as a very small child, she was curious, serious, and gifted with a large vocabulary. She asked questions constantly, and she usually followed the answers up with more questions. So it shouldn’t have been a surprise, I suppose, when she asked me THE question: “Mommy, where do babies come from?” She was only 5 though, about to start kindergarten. I gathered up my resolve to be honest and informative.
I gave her the basic “babies grow inside the mommy’s tummy” routine, but that was not nearly enough to satisfy my daughter. She kept asking follow-up questions until she came to, “But Mommy, how does the seed get into the mommy’s tummy?” I found myself explaining to my tiny little girl the mechanics of conception. This was definitely not in the Mom Manual!

Kindergarten

Katie was content that her questions had been answered, but I immediately realized that there was a potential problem. Katie loved to learn, and she felt a responsibility to pass on her knowledge to those who might not be so well-informed. She was to begin kindergarten in just a few days, and I knew she would feel the need to tell her classmates this fascinating information.
“Katie,” I said, “please don’t tell the other kindergarteners about where babies come from.”
“But why, Mommy?” she asked.
“Well, their mommies and daddies want to be the ones to tell them.”
Katie was an obedient child, and she promised she wouldn’t tell. I held my breath.
The first day of kindergarten was almost too exciting. Katie bounded into the school without so much as a backward glance at me, and she beamed as she came out when school was over.
“So, how was your first day of school?” I asked.
“Great!” she almost shouted. “I punched a kid!”
Oh dear. “What exactly happened?” I asked, even though I dreaded hearing it.

The first day of kindergarten was almost too exciting. Katie bounded into the school without so much as a backward glance at me, and she beamed as she came out when school was over.
“So, how was your first day of school?” I asked.
“Great!” she almost shouted. “I punched a kid!”
Oh dear. “What exactly happened?” I asked, even though I dreaded hearing it.