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DECATUR — Central Illinoisans dreaming of a white Christmas got their wish for the first time in seven years, forecasters said Sunday.

Brian Masterson of Decatur said it was hard to believe it’s been seven years since he’s seen a white Christmas. This year is the first time his two sons, Lucas, 4, and Jaxon 3, will have a white Christmas. The boys were bundled up as they walked through the snow in Central Park Sunday on their way to meet Santa Claus for the first time.

“We definitely want a White Christmas,” Masterson said as he held his boys' hands to keep them warm.

2010 was the last year with more than an inch of snow on Christmas Day in Central Illinois, meteorologist Scott Baker with the National Weather Service in Lincoln said.

On. Dec. 15, National Weather Service officials said the chance of snow on Christmas were around 30 percent.

“In Illinois, a widespread snow cover has been hard to come by the last several years,” they said.