Here comes Santa Claus

Last year's visit to Santa involved waiting outside in the freezing cold, while Nathan had the best time playing with the other kids and looking inside the windows into Santa's "house". Fast forward to when we finally reached the front of the line and the doors opened and we were welcomed in to see the big man in person and Nathan clung to my leg and refused to go anywhere near Mr. Claus. Sadly, we don't even have a picture because we couldn't peel him off my leg.

So, this year we made some changes. Instead of the adorable little house across the street from where we live (which involves waiting outside), this time we went to the crowded mall, which is heated!  We brought snacks and toys to keep Nathan entertained during the long wait. And most effective I think was that for the past week or two, we had been talking about meeting Santa. Reminding Nathan how friendly he is, how silly he is with his loud "Ho, Ho, Ho" laugh and that most importantly this is the guy who brings lots and lots of toys!!! So after waiting in line for over an hour, we were really hoping Nathan would be excited because Will and I had already agreed that if he got scared and didn't want to sit on Santa's lap, we wouldn't force him to.

I am happy to report that he did great. He happily sat on Santa's lap, playing with the jingle bell that was passed out to all the waiting kids. When Santa asked him what he wanted for Christmas, he looked right at him and said "A lollipop." (Easy customer)

This year we got a picture. Next year, we'll work towards a smile. Baby steps.