Shamone's
Christmas Story
Dear Santa,
I know I am a little old for writing you, but someone once told me you're never too old to believe. Plus, you know I'm spoiled. You can blame Mama for that. Anyway, Santa, I just wanted to send you my Christmas wishlist and let you know how things are going with me and the family. I know you must look forward to my yearly letters. Hopefully the FBI doesn't raid the North Pole. I would hate for you and Mrs. Claus and the elves to get messed up in the mob. The children of the world would truly hate me if I forced you all into a witness protection program and Christmas was never the same. I just can't picture Dietz driving the sleigh as Mama shouts orders at him. Enough bad thoughts. Let's talk about more beautiful things, like me. I know I will get tons more presents this year now that our inner circle has expanded. Bill, like everyone, treats me like the little princess I am. I know his family business has been rough this past year but he assured me there will be plenty of gifts under my tree. I hope he replaces some of the underwear he's destroyed in the heat of the moment. Woops! I'm sorry Santa! I'm supposed to be a good girl for you, not naughty. Please forgive me. Mama says she's going to buy me some clothes that actually fit. Bill won't be happy about that but at least my big brother will get off my case. Speaking of Danny, I hope you drop some coal in his stocking this year. He's been wayyy too happy lately. Santos and happiness just don't go together and I feel confused. Ever since he and Michelle renewed their vows last summer you can't wipe that smile off of his face. The other day I caught him hanging mistle toes in every freakin' doorway in Casa Santos. Can you believe that Santa? Danny, my brother, the one who was grumpy for every one of his past 26 Christmases before. Now he's humming carols all day long and buying gifts for Michelle galore. I know he won't give me as many presents this year because of her. Oh, and did I mention she's pregnant? Yeah, that little extended honeymoon to San Cristobel was quite a trip. The baby's due in April. They're having a boy. Daniel Jr. That baby's not even born yet and he's getting more attention than me. Danny carries this little blurry picture of him around and shows everyone, especially all those business types who hang out at the house now that the business is legitimate. Michelle is glowing brighter than our Christmas tree. She's constantly rubbing that bulging belly of hers. God I would hate it if I were that fat! Ugh! Danny seems to love it though. He says it's cute. See what I mean? He's wayyy too happy. He says if I'm careful I can hold the baby when he's born. That's if Michelle lets me. She hates me for some reason. I overheard her telling Danny that they better get lots of Dr. Seus books so that I can continue my education. Whatever! Michelle's the one who wants to be a doctor, not me. Why would I want some medical books? Mama wasn't too happy about the baby at first but ever since she felt little Danny kick she's been a doting grandmother. She and Michelle's Aunt Meta even threw Michelle a baby shower. More presents. None of them for me. :-/ I better go now, I promised Ben I'd help him bake cookies for Nino and the guys. Don't forget my Versace swimwear and Cartier diamonds! And oh yeah, I guess you can bring some toys for the baby as long as they're the kind I can use without breaking a nail. You know how that makes me pout.
Later Santa,
Pilar
***
Dear Santa,
It's been a long time since I've written you a letter, but I need some help this Christmas. You see, my new girlfriend, Pilar, is putting quite a strain on me. I mean, the sex is great. Very passionate and energetic. But she is what we frat boys like to call high maintainence. And you know Lewis Oil has been going through this take over thing so money is tight. Can you believe she asked me to dig into my trust fund? Mom would kill me if she found out I did that. She already has issues with Pilar. Mom and Matt walked in on us once and things just haven't been the same. I tried to tell Pilar that would should leave their whipped cream stash alone but ever since that night at the boarding house she's had some kind of whipped cream fettish. Not that I'm complaining. I guess I'm just asking for some special help this year. Pilar is really into designer duds and expensive jewelry. I almost gagged when I realized how much that Versace stuff she wears costs. I mean, I figured it's so small it should be cheap. I guess I was wrong. Well hey, you're talking to a man who doesn't know the difference between tulips and roses, what do you expect? Michelle thinks I should just make Pilar dinner or something. She says Danny is always doing romantic stuff like that for her. She told me today he hung mistle toe all over the house and made good use of it. Those two are so in love. It's nice to see them happy finally. The baby was quite a surprise but one they cherish. Rick almost had another cow when he found out. He couldn't believe his little sister was pregnant. But he's come around now after seeing Danny falling all over Michelle. At Thanksgiving dinner, Michelle was experiencing morning sickness from hell. Danny refused to eat until she felt better. He wanted to suffer with her. They ended up having Thanksgiving dinner a week later when Michelle got a craving for turkey and sardines. Danny Santos is a good man for eating that so-called feast with his wife. He told me about it later that night over a beer and some pizza at Company. He made me swear not to tell Michelle how he hid the sardines in his napkin and fed them to Drew. That's their dog. Danny found her yelping along the side of the road one night and brought her home. After deciding no one else wanted her, Michelle named her Drew and kept her. She makes a mess every once in a while but for the most part is a playful and entertaining creature. Anyway, if you have some extra Donna Karan or Calvin Klein up there could you please put my name on the tag and give it to Pilar? She's been kinda bummed lately. Something about not getting so much attention. I dunno. But anything you can do would be appreciated.
Thanks man,
Bill
***
Dear Mr. Claus,
Merry Christmas!! Please sent the Mrs. and the elves my best. I know I don't usually ask for anything but this Christmas is special. Things are going so great for me I can hardly believe my life is real. I have the world's most wonderful husband. Danny is so perfect. He loves me more than I thought ever possible. I cannot tell you how proud I am of how far he's come in a year. This time last year he was stalking me, terrorizing me to try to avenge the death of his brother. Now I know he really didn't mean any of that. It was the madness his family forced him to be a part of that made him act so crazy. Now they do things his way. Danny is so smart. He completely legitimized the business in six months. Not only did he make it legal, but he made it successful. Even Carmen was shocked when first quarter earnings for Santos Enterprises Inc. were posted. The company had made nearly $3 million in profit since legitimizing. Once the news got out they had to turn investors away. Danny is so much more calm now that our future is secure and safe. It makes us so happy to know that our son will never have to carry the kinds of worries Danny has. Our son. I still have trouble getting used to the sound of that. Only four more months and he'll be here. I can't wait. I'll never forget the day I found out I was pregnant. We had just returned from our honeymoon --a a month of absolute bliss in San Cristobel. But as soon as we landed in Springfield I felt like I would die. I puked my guts out for three days before Danny insisted I go see Rick. I was sure the seafood buffet we shared on the plane was the culprit, but Danny wouldn't hear of it. I relented when I nearly fainted on the way to register for the fall semester. Danny caught me and practically carried me to the car. "That's it," he ordered. "I'm taking you to the hospital." I love it when he orders me around. But don't tell him I said that. ;-) I think Rick was as shocked as I was when he read me the test results. I was on the pill so the news was definitely not expected. I don't remember much about that moment. I remember my tears soaking my hospital gown. I was scared and shocked and thrilled all at the same time. I couldn't even speak a complete sentence. When my husband walked in the room I lost it. I became completely hysterical. Danny must have thought I had been diagnosed with some fatal disease by my reaction and the look on my brother's face. I think Danny and I cried the whole way home. We couldn't believe it. Once the shock wore off we were so happy. Still a bit terrifyed, but happy. Not surprisingly, our little boy reminded us oh so well that he was real and a perfect mixture of Santos and Bauer. It's only been the past three weeks that I haven't had my head in the toilet. Danny has been so wonderful. I haven't exactly been the most pleasant pregnant woman to be around and I have the weirdest cravings. He says I'm glowing despite it all. I actually believe him. How could I not be glowing with a little version of him growing inside of me? I didn't think I could love anyone more than Daniel Santos. Until we created his child. Our first Christmas together is going to be so special. Danny keeps telling me that we will move into our own home once the baby is born. But actually Casa Santos isn't too bad anymore. Carmen is actually acting human. I never questioned her love for her family, just her way of expressing it. I know she loves her grandson, and in a way I think she loves me. She as much told me so one day when she took me to my doctor's appointment. Danny was out of the country on business. Carmen thanked me for rescuing her son from the evil life she had created for him. She admitted she was afraid at first but realized it was best for everyone. She cried when Dr. Sedwick told me I was carrying a boy. She rubbed her hand over my swollen abdomen. "His life will be so much better because of you," she whispered. Of course living with Pilar the princess has it's ups and downs. Danny wants her to be Daniel's Godmother. I am frightened at that thought. I was impressed when she suggested we use cloth diapers for the baby. But I couldn't believe when she wanted us to order Versace diapers -- 450 bucks for a dozen. Can you believe that girl? Nonetheless she is Danny's sister and he loves her. His love is so unconditional and strong. That's why I want this Christmas to be perfect for him. That's why I'm writing to you. All I want for Christmas is to see my husband completely happy. I want you to give him all the Christmas joys that were stolen from his as a child. I want to make sure that beautiful smile never leaves his face. I want our child to be healthy and safe and I want us to have a million more Christmases as magical as this one, although I doubt anything will compare to our first. Don't work too hard this year, Santa. I'll make sure to leave you some cookies. (Don't worry, Aunt Meta made them!)
With all my love,
Michelle
***
Hey Santa,
This is my first letter to you so bear with me. It haven't been expressing my feelings for very long and it's still tough for me at times. Well except for with Michelle. That woman turns me to complete mush and she knows it. Thank God for her. Thank God for Michelle. This holiday season with her has been so amazing. I told her on our wedding night that she was perfect and she is. She is perfection on earth. Sometimes I believe she is my angel, Ray told me she may be. If it weren't for her, I'm sure I'd be on a path to hell. But now life is good, life is really good. It's great. Our marriage is stronger than ever. Our love is growing every day. I can't tell you how good it makes me feel to look into her eyes and see a soul that wants me. There was a time I thought that would never happen. Now I know it will never end. I feel like such a kid this Christmas. I can't remember ever being this excited. Pilar says I am annoying. Mama says I'm crazy in love. Grandmother says my spirit is finally free. She's right. I can't imagine getting any better gift than the ones I have. I have Michelle. We have our unborn son. My family is slowly but surely working out our problems. Business is good. Life is good. I feel so blessed. Sometimes I wonder why I was given this chance. Michelle tells me I deserve it and shouldn't question it. She's going to be a great mother. Our son is so lucky to have a woman with so much love as his mother. She is so protective and caring with him already. He's been tough on her but she loves every minute of being pregnant. I guess he takes after his dad in that way, goes from making her sick to capturing her heart. I can't wait to hold my son. Only 126 more days. That's what Dr. Sedwick tells us anyway. If he's anything like his parents he'll probably be late. Sometimes we tend to drag our feet. But once I get that boy in my arms I won't hesitate to tell him how much I love him. I am going to take him to that park bench and hold him so tight. Then I'll tell him he can do anything he wants to do in life. He can be anything he wants to be. I'll tell him to fight for his dreams and to never let anyone hold him back. And I'll tell him if he ever hurts his mother I'll break his neck. OK, I'll work on my wording, but you get the idea. I got Michelle this great gift for Christmas. It's a scrapbook that I had printed just for her. The first page reads: "This is the beginning of a great love story..." It contains pictures from the past year and entries from my journal. Yeah, I have a journal. There are blank pages for our son and the rest of our future. Of course I have many other gifts for her, too. I'm writing to you because if I know my wife she's already written, asking you to give me the world this Christmas. I just wanted to save you the time. I already have the world and I get to enjoy my precious gift everyday. If you're going to do anything at all give Michelle all the happiness she deserves, and send my sister some Versaces so she'll stop whining. I worry about that girl sometimes. I better go now, I asked Dietz to wrap one of Michelle's gifts and I see our dog Drew just trotted in with a wad of paper and scotch tape all over her. I swear that man make's the simpliest of tasks difficult. Look at this mess! You'd think a bomb went off in here or something. Have a good one, Santa.
Merry Christmas,
Danny
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