Easter’s on its way all right, but just how does that bunny get inside?

Santa has the chimney. Is the chimney bunny-friendly too? I can’t remember. Actually, the pondering of this question is the Tooth Fairy’s fault. She started this.

Recently, my 5-year-old son lost his first tooth. I was excited, already planning to place a 50-cent piece under his pillow that very night. Before we turned in, however, he had some questions about the Tooth Fairy.

“How does the Tooth Fairy get inside, Mom?” Tyler asked me before bed.

“Hmm … well, I think it’s kind of like Santa. She comes in through the chimney.” My husband looked at me. Maybe that wasn’t right. Tyler was trying to picture a Tinkerbell-like figure with soot all over her costume, I could tell.

“Actually,” I continued, “I think she’s more like a spirit. She kind of floats in.”

“Like a ghost?” Tyler asked, eyes wide.

“Definitely not like a ghost.” I was really messing this up.

“And she’s going to come in and sneak around my room and take my tooth?”

“Yes. Well, no. I mean she doesn’t sneak around. She leaves a gift under your pillow for your tooth.”

“Does she look inside my head for other teeth to take?”

“No! Of course not.” Now the tooth fairy was starting to scare me.

In the end, Tyler decided he did not want the tooth fairy skulking around our house at night. He didn’t care if this shady lady left money or toys or presents. He would keep his tooth, thank you very much. Fine with me, but the whole thing got me thinking about the Easter Bunny, who plays quite the second fiddle to Santa. So much so, that whoever conjured up the bunny didn’t really complete the logistics of the myth.

How does the Easter Bunny get inside?

This is America, where necessity is the mother of invention. For six bucks, you can buy a Magic Easter Bunny Key from a company in New Hampshire and leave the key on the doorstep so the old boy can just let himself in. Well, you could buy it. It sold out at the end of March; apparently I’m not the only one dealing with inquiring minds.

Some people try to complete the Easter Bunny explanation, which originated in Germany in the 1600s. A Web site called Associated Content offered this explanation for how the Easter Bunny gets inside: “The Easter Bunny apprenticed with a locksmith many centuries ago, learning how to pick locks using his teeth. Under the Code of Ethics for locksmiths, however, he is obliged to limit his lock-picking to socially beneficial situations.” What? A rabbit with lock-picking teeth? That’s just as creepy as the Tooth Fairy hunting for teeth still in your mouth.   WikiAnswers came up with something close to my Tooth Fairy ramblings:
“It is almost certain that the Easter Bunny possesses whatever magical abilities enable him to pass through solid surfaces or go up and down chimneys, just like Santa Claus/Father Christmas does.”

The Easter Bunny can pass through solid surfaces? Good to know. So it’s magic, right? That’s my story, and I’m sticking to it. Happy Easter!