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Words cannot express the joy Puddinhead has brought to my family since being introduced to this experience Christmas Eve 2003. The anticipation and look on my children's faces as the door bell rings is priceless. This tradition has come to be our most cherished part of the evening for all those who gather in our home on Christmas Eve. As our children slip on their new jammies, nestle into bed and await Santa's arrival, my husband and I envision the smiling faces that lie before us will one day too prepare for the arrival of Puddinhead for their own children. Thanks so much for bringing this wonderful tradition into our lives as well as creating memories that will last a lifetime. We look forward to sharing the story of Puddinhead for many years to come.
~ Julie St. Germain
I grew up with this family tradition and can tell you as a child it was fun and exciting. You knew when the door bell rang Christmas was really here. Not only did I get to open a present before bed but Santa was on his way to MY house! As a mom of three this tradition is a life saver. When I am ready for everyone to settle down and get ready for bed the door bell rings and my childen get so excited just like I did. I get to relive my childhood every year when I look into their happy faces and smiling eyes. There is no night time battle. Just happy childen settling down for a wonderful night of dreams. I have told many parents of this tradition and have been thanked by every single one that has tried it out. I can not tell you how happy I am to see this book come out and give parents another wonderful tool to help them out. As busy parents we all need a Puddinhead in our lives. Thank you Mom and Aunt Sandy for helping parents around the world come up with a fun tradition that makes a lifetime of happy memories.
~ Lynnette Dowers, mom of three and Child Care director to 100 families
My husband and I cannot wait to start this tradition with our family!! I also grew up celebrating this tradition and the excitement was beyond belief every Christmas Eve. I felt so special that Santa had a helper who knew just where I lived! Now as a parent, I understand why this tradition started and we cannot wait to see the joy on our son's face when he opens the door to his own special Christmas package. Here's to carrying on the tradition!
~ The Carlos Family
It was a great pleasure to have been intoduced to Puddinhead during my years of being a Father of Four. There were numerous car chases throughout the neighborhood because one of the pajama recipients thought they saw a flashy elf running down the street (I guess it was better than trying to chase him on foot).
Every year, two weeks prior to Christmas, I would try to map out my strategy on how to be Puddinhead. This was as much fun as watching the children open the front door to find their pajamas. Success usually came when the children were being bathed as the older I got, the slower Puddinhead got, so he needed time to run from the front door to the back without passing out.
As the children grew in years, the older ones took my job for the younger ones but Puddinhead was smart. He started leaving Mom cute pajamas at the door. This is a must to keep Puddinhead out of trouble for a couple of days.
As you can tell, I am the Husband of Author Sandy and Proud Brother-in-Law of Author Mary Ann. I will cherish the memories Puddinhead has given my family and am very proud of these two women that they have shared this tradition with many others.
Good Luck on your book.
~ Bill Finn
Some of the above listed people have seen both sides of Puddinhead. I have not yet had the satisfaction of being a parent of one of the excited young ones to open packages of pajama's, but can tell you that I had the privilege of being Puddinhead one year for many of my nieces and nephews. WHAT A THRILL! As a young one, I used to spend time on every single floor of my house on December 24th at night searching across the lake and looking down the street looking for the quickest thing known to mankind! This tradition was so real to me and I was fortunate to have older siblings to be able to carry it on and keep me believing as I grew wiser and faster in my older days! I am so glad that others will get the opporutnity to benefit from such a great family tradition!
~ Tommy Finn
My first set of pajamas from Puddinhead came when I was about 18 years old, and boy was I excited! I thought Puddinhead was the best character since Santa Claus himself! Although I was clearly at an age where I knew who exactly puddinhead was, I found the tradition itself to be very warming and exciting. The feeling of putting on a brand new set of warm winter pj's on Christmas Eve, along with others of all ages created a warm sense of family and tradition for me. However, the smiling faces on the little ones in the house were the best gift of all. The feeling that Puddinhead brought on was a sense of excitement, family, and Christmas all in one. I thought, and still do, think that it is a tradition that EVERYONE should celebrate. It is such a great idea. I know that I wish I would have had Puddinhead in my childhood to get my anxious self in bed before Santa's arrival, so I can't wait to share it with kids of my own someday!
~ Britney Gard
This tradition has been a part of my life for 40 years. Some of my most treasured memories as a child came from Puddinhead.
I remember chasing, what my Mom and Dad said was a magical elf, down the street in the hopes of getting just one glimpse of Santa’s little helper. I remember the foot prints in the snow and the knocks at the door. The true excitement, however, was the “knowledge” that the gift of pajamas meant the Santa was on his way.
As I grew older, the tradition stayed alive by sharing the story and tradition with family and friends. It was a thrill to introduce Puddinhead to the uninitiated and assist them in bringing the tradition to their families.
As a parent, it was just as exciting to be apart of the story and find new ways to involve my own children. Sometimes I think it is even more enjoyable now then when I was a child…. Not much of a statement coming from a 40 year old adolescent.
The important thing to remember is that it is a tradition for all of us, to be passed on and cherished by everyone, of all ages. It’s traditions like this, a magical elf called Puddinhead, that can nurture, restore and grow your faith in family and friends.
Mom and Aunt Sandy, thank you so much for the memories and for the inspiration you provided in creating this book. Your strength and determination are even more magical then Puddinhead himself.
~ Rodney Bresnahan
I've had the pleasure of being involved in this Christmas family tradition for over 30 years now. As a young child, I could not wait to see not only what Puddinhead would bring, (would it be Pac-Man Pajamas, Big Bird pj's, Cubs or Bulls pj's?) but also when, where, and how he/it would drop the boxes off each year. My siblings and I would fill our conversations with questions of "What door will he come to? What time will he drop boxes off? Does he talk to Santa about us? How can we catch him?...Do we even want to catch him?!" The tradition of Puddinhead always meant more than the gift of the pajamas, which is powerful when you are talking about kids and presents! My wife and I have had the pleasure of sharing Puddinhead with our 2 children, and I can truly say the joy and excitement on their faces of waiting for Puddinhead before bedtime on Christmas Eve is outstanding. They know Santa is coming soon, and they know all is okay. Mom and Aunt Mary Ann, thanks for keeping this tradition alive and relevant in all of our lives....we promise to do the same. Have fun with this...be creative, and be a kid again!
~ Billy Finn
Just saying the name of this tradition brings a smile to my face "Puddinhead". To my mother and Aunt Mary Ann, thank you for sharing this tradition with us and allowing us to relive our childhood memories through the smiles on our children's faces on Christmas Eve. Our family has had the privilege to experience this every Christmas Eve for over 30 years. While my siblings were all about the pajamas, I was all about the "catch" of Puddinhead. I was always trying to devise a plan to catch him in the act. Puddinhead would never come to the door that I was watching, and I could never figure out how he knew what door I was standing by. Oh I did come close one year! Let me officially apologize to the man who was driving the yellow car down the street back in 1985 that I ran after that night. I really thought I had him. But what goes around comes around now that I have children of my own. They want to set up cameras to watch the front door so they can see Puddinhead. There are few ideas that outsmarted me as a child. Sometimes Puddinhead comes during "bath time"...How did he know when bath time was? Sometimes Puddinhead would come while we were in the basement playing... that was a long run to the front door; by the time we got to the door he was gone. But as we got older and faster, Puddinhead started coming to different doors. Sometimes the front door, sometimes the back, and maybe even the door to the garage. Here is to the smiles you have put on children's faces already and to the children that will embrace it soon.
~ Bobby Finn
Mary Ann and Sandy. Congratulations on your book, The Puddinhead Story. It was a delightful read and I can see why the tradition is carried on year after year. Everyone involved did a fantastic job in putting it all together. You must be so proud! Congratulations again and good luck in your future endeavors.
Can't wait to start the tradition in Canada, eh!!
Lynne and Dennis Zurbrigg
~ Lynne and Dennis Zurbrigg
I can remember growing up with my two brothers trying to catch Puddinhead. Three boys, three doors, simple right... We never were able to catch that nimble elf but were always thankfull for the pj's he left. I remember one year I was Puddinhead for Tommy and that was a lot of fun and I look forward to starting this tradition down in Columbus Ohio with my soon to be wife Melissa. This is a tradition that I was fortunate enough to participate in and will help keep alive for generations to come.
~ Tim Welsh
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