We spend so much of our time trying to get our children to be honest in their relationships. We punish them when they tell lies yet at the same time we perpetrate some giant porkies on our kids.

Daughterinblack is 10 years old. Last weekend she pulled out a tooth and proudly told us about it. She was told to place it in the little silver tooth fairy pot and as a matter of course the tooth fairy will come along and collect the tooth in exchange for a small amount of money.

Cut to later in the evening, Daughterinblack was still awake in bed so we both went into the room; her mother distracted her whilst I snuck the pot out of the room to snaffle the tooth and leave the money but lo and behold there were 3 50 pence coins in the pot already.

Confused I put the pot back and retreated to plan another campaign.

A few minutes later I asked Daughterinblack which tooth she had lost and said I would look at it, I then feigned surprise at the 3 coins and commented that it was rather early for the tooth fairy to come as she doesn’t leave her tooth castle before midnight.

In case you don’t know this is what the tooth fairy does with the teeth…..she has built a great big sparkly white castle out of teeth.

Daughterinblack then admitted that she had lost the tooth in her bedroom whilst playing with it and had put the money in the pot herself so that we wouldn’t know that she had lost the tooth and be disappointed with her.

Magically the tooth fairy still left some money and the tooth was left in the pot the following night with an IOU note to the fairy. The note was her idea.