Are your kids getting antsy in these final days before Santa arrives? The folks who track that jolly old elf’s path each Christmas Eve—the North American Aerospace Defense Command officials—already have fun and games lined up on their Web site for kids.

When the weather outside is frightful and the kids are being less than delightful, it helps to head to The "NORAD Tracks Santa" Web site, http://www.noradsanta.org, where holiday activities change daily. I recommend you watch the introductory video of Santa on his sleigh flying over some of the world’s greatest monuments, from Big Ben, the Taj Mahal, and the Eiffel Tower, to the Seattle Space Needle, and Golden Gate Bridge, among other sites. It even puts parents in the right frame of mind to celebrate the season!

If your native language is something other than English, you’re in luck! The site is available in seven languages: English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Spanish and Chinese. On Dec. 24, the Web site will stream videos, captured by NORAD "Santa Cams," from numerous cities along Santa's journey.

This year, children and the young-at-heart are able to track Santa through Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, Flickr, and TroopTube.mil. To follow on any of these Web sites, type in @noradsanta into the site's search engine and start your tracking.

Beginning at midnight MST on Dec. 24, visitors to the "NORAD Tracks Santa" Web site can watch Santa as he prepares his sleigh, checks his list, and goes through all his preparations to ensure he has a successful journey.

As soon as Santa takes off from the North Pole, children can track him with up-to-the-minute Google Maps and Google Earth reports.

Santa trackers will begin answering phones and replying to e-mail at 4 a.m. MST on Christmas Eve. Children of all ages can call 877-Hi-NORAD (877-446-6723) toll-free, or can send an e-mail to noradtrackssanta@gmail.com.

The program began Dec. 24, 1955, when a child dialed a phone number that was misprinted in a newspaper advertisement and reached the Continental Air Defense Command Operations Center in Colorado Springs, Colo. The commander at Cheyenne Mountain Air Force Station who answered the phone that night gave the youngster the information requested: Santa's whereabouts. This began the tradition of tracking Santa, a tradition that was carried on by NORAD when it was formed in 1958.

The program has grown immensely since it first was presented on the Internet in 1998. The Web site receives millions of unique visitors from hundreds of countries and territories around the world. In addition, its operations center will be occupied for 25 hours with more than 1,200 volunteers on Christmas Eve, who will be receiving hundreds of thousands phone calls and e-mails from families around the world.

— Written by Odile Fredericks, Carolina Parent Web Editor

For family holiday events and more, visit CarolinaParent.com's Triangle Holiday Guide.