Every day, I edged closer and closer to the big one, until the morning of the 24th. I sat at the table with my calendar in hand, and as I attempted to pry open the door, I realized it had already been opened. Someone had opened it and then closed it again. And then I looked in shock: No Chocolate! My giant chocolate I'd been waiting a month for was gone! And who was the culprit? My brother, who'd eaten his entire chocolate advent calendar in one sitting on December 1st and couldn't resist eating mine as well. Honestly, I remember this as one of the most crushing disappointments of my childhood. Probably because my brother not only didn't get in trouble for eating his calendar, but he didn't get punished for eating mine either! And I, the patient older child who played by the rules, was just out one giant Santa-shaped chocolate. My calendar this year doesn't have an over-sized chocolate for the 24th. Nevertheless, I will be hyper-vigilant, lest my husband attempt a similar, nefarious trick to crush my chocolate advent spirit!