Twas the night before Christmas and all through the house, not a creature was stirring – not even a mouse.

Those words were penned nearly 200 years ago, Santa explained to children gathered around in wonder at the Troy Public Library.

Each year, Santa stops by the library to read the iconic book to the kids before taking photos with them and hearing their top Christmas wishes.

And he explains that some things have changed since the book was written.

“How many reindeer did I have in this book?” Santa asked the kids, who answered that he had eight. But now, Santa said, there are nine reindeer with the addition of Rudolph. “And why wasn’t he in this book?”

“He wasn’t born yet,” one of the children answered.

“That’s right,” Santa said. “This poem was written in 1823. Rudolph didn’t come along until 1939.”

And Santa no longer holds the “stump of a pipe tight in his teeth,” he said. “We learned since then tobacco is bad for you so I don’t smoke and neither should you.”

Before Santa made his way back to the North Pole, he had some encouragement to give.

“Make sure you all get in bed very early this year – 7 p.m. or 7:30 p.m. – because I’m starting in Pike County this year,” he told the giggling children. “And make sure you put out some milk and cookies for me.”

Santa  will be all over Pike County this December, so be sure to keep a close look-out for upcoming appearances. And Santa will return on Christmas Eve on December 24 to deliver toys to all the good girls and boys to open on Christmas Day.