Denton Haber the Best Santa Clause

Denton Haber the Best Santa Clause Ever!

A very hard day was the day we had to get rid of our Great Dane "Moby" because we were moving into an RV.  The reason is obvious two adults and three kids living in an RV left no room for a Great Dane.

Fast forward 60 days.

The boys are out of school for Christmas break.  The four of us ( Walker, Chancellor, Prescott and myself) had this great conversation going about Christmas gifts.  I called my dad (Denton Haber) and asked if he could join us.

Chancellor and Denton Haber eating breakfast at Bob's Carry Out and Delivery in Sioux Falls, SD

The conversation once my Dad joined us went something like this.

Dad ( Denton Haber) "What did you ask Santa Clause for Christmas?"

Chancellor (age 6) "A grappling Hook!"

Dad "What is that?"

Chancellor "You shoot it like a gun then it pulls you to the top of a building, then you want to get down you can slide down it like a zip-line!"

Walker (age 9) "I want an Ipod 64gb red in color!"

Prescott (age 12) "I don't need anything, we don't really have room in the RV for any more stuff."

Chancellor "Dad says the problem with what we are asking for is that Santa Clause will want to treat us fair and when you average what we are asking for you will get CRAP."

Dad "Why would Santa Clause give you Crap for Christmas?"

Walker "Grandpa Dad says Crap is when you can't remember what you got on New Year's Eve."

Chancellor "I still want a grappling hook."

Walker  "What Dad's trying to say is you will get one but it will be like a McDonald's toy.  When you fire it the hook will go about five inches."

Chancellor  "That's what CRAP is?  I don't want a McDonald's toy for Christmas!"

Prescott  "So then we need to be asking for one thing, that's what dad is trying to tell us."

By now my dad is laughing and giggling.

Dad "What would you want if you could have anything, Prescott?"

Walker  "Jumps in I want to go to Egypt!  They are having a war again so it's really cheap."

Prescott  "I want to go to Egypt too."

Me "No we are not going to Egypt!"

Chancellor  "Then I want a puppy and a grappling hook!"

Walker  "No, only one thing I would like to have a puppy too."  Everybody agrees.

Shit this is not the way I wanted this conversation to go

Dad  "You know boys if you had puppies it could help you pay for college?"

Lots of discussion follows about how much money they could make by selling puppies.  I'm enjoying the conversation but I'm thinking there is no way in Hell we are having puppies.  What a bad business model Prescott starts talking about how many dogs you would have to have enough puppies to pay for college.  Walker says "I'll bet you could put Yokie babies in an Elephant just like they are doing to bring the Wooly Mammoth.  Then you would have to have only one Elephant.

The Three Rules

1)  We all have to be asking for a Yorkie Puppy an nothing else.

2)  The Name will be Boz

3)  We can't tell Mom

As soon as the boys are out of ear shoot I call Annette and tell her the story.

Everybody wants to give us a puppy!

The boys (including Grandpa) did a very good job of staying on message.  We want a Yorkie puppy for Christmas. But, my dad has one in hand before supper the same day.  Thank God we were able to stop more puppies from coming.  I'm very thankful that people called instead of just showing up with puppies.

Denton dressed up as Santa Clause delivering the Yorkie puppy named Boz.

Annette's Rules For Grandpa

1) You will dress up like Santa Clause and personally deliver it to them

2)  No extra attention outside!  No Camera, no people, no whatever

3)  You get to ring the doorbell say "Merry Christmas hand them the Puppy see the amazed look in their eyes and leave!"

It was a truly magical moment for both my Dad and my boys.  None of them knew who it was in the costume.  The Saturday 8 days ago the boys had realized that the laugh was Grandpa's laugh.  Grandpa got busted laughing at something they said while eating lunch with us.

Chancellor  "Asks Grandpa are you Santa Clause?  Did you give me Boz?"

Dad  Looks at me I nod he starts to cry and nods his head in the affirmative.  Chancellor gives him a great big hug and says "I always knew you were Santa Clause!"

I'm still not sure if this means he no longer believes in Santa Clause or if he has always thought: "My Dad is Santa Clause!"

My dad died on Monday I found out on Tuesday and we buried him on Saturday.  I found out yesterday the reason he was late for lunch with us was because he was at my eight year old nieces Volleyball Game.

My Dad was the "Best Dad Ever"

Yesterday in the car on way to the cemetery, between the church and the cemetery,  and just after they told me I could have done a better job.  The boys started talking about how they could just get a Great Dane instead of an Elephant.  

How many Yorkie puppies do you think a Great Dane could have Dad?