Santa Photo

After waiting in line for over 30" Gerritt, Sophia & Jacob met Santa again this year. I quickly put Jacob on Santa's lap before he had a chance to turn around & realize that the reason he could see me was because I WASN'T the one holding him. My Mom was clapping her hands, I was making Jacob laugh & the photographer was ringing his bell. Santa was smart enough to be quiet. Jacob was trying to figure out how to react to all the attention. The 3-second delay gave the photographer just enough time to snap a picture. Loud crying which followed let us know Jacob wanted to be as far away from Santa as possible. Another memory made & mission accomplished!

Santa Photos

We took the kids for their annual Santa photos today. It was a lot of rushing around, picking out the right outfits, getting the kids dressed, making sure they were fed & used the potty prior to leaving & then loading everyone into the car. It was our first outing with all 3 of the kids. Although it was a lot of work (I am still not fully recovered from Jacob's birth), it felt like an adventure.


The attempt #1

The Santa tent was outside & we had to wait in line for over half-an-hour. Even though the evening was chilly, thankfully, there were warming lamps everywhere. Of course, it couldn't be a ride without any bumps. Jacob pooped & there was a mad rush for us to find a restroom. Thankfully, we were able to find one nearby & change his diaper quickly. Many people standing with us in line seemed to understand how young Jacob was & gave us many compliments & sympathetic smiles. :-)


The attempt #2

All enjoyed meeting Santa except Sophia. No amount of preparation could convince her that Santa was a good guy. She used the full volume of her voice to let everyone know how unhappy she was. Santa appeared pretty nervous about sitting all of the 3 children on his lap, so my husband & I had to step into the photo. While Daddy didn't have much luck keeping Sophia on his lap, I did a better job by promising her - what else? - a lollipop!


Our final attempt & probably the best photo we are going to get this year

We went home exhausted, but satisfied. Our first outing with 3 kids was not perfect, but we pulled it off. We would be able to tell Jacob that he met Santa for the first time when he was just 3 weeks & 2 days old. Way to go!

Santa photos

Yesterday I took the kids to the Crossroads Mall for their annual Santa photo. It has become an essential part of our Christmas season. I really enjoy dressing them up in cheerful holiday outfits even though it takes a lot of work. Last year we drove to the Alderwood Mall in Lynnwood since the Santa photoshop there was one of a few offering electronic images saved on a CD (paper images fade, you know). Thankfully, this year the Crossroads Mall near our house started to offer electronic imaging as well. We took the photo yesterday & I received the image in my email today. Easy!
You may remember Gerritt's 2008 Santa photo below. The Santa picture taking was so traumatic for him, we skipped that activity for him completely last Christmas.


Gerritt & Santa in 2008

It was Sophia's turn to cry this year. Gerritt was so happy to sit in Santa's lap & even smiled upon request. Sophia, on the other hand, started to holler the second I placed her in Santa's arms. She was literally trying to jump out of his embrace. As much as I sympathized with Sophia's distress, it was also comical, so I HAD to buy the photo. :-)

Mind you, she turned off her crying just like that the minute I picked her up. So no long-lasting psychological damage there. I plan on framing the kids' Christmas photos & displaying them around the house every Christmas season. We'll have quite a collection by the time they reach high school!

 

This is a photo of me as a little girl celebrating New Year's (it's celebrated much more than Christmas in Russia)

While at the Mall, we visited the Starbucks coffee shop for chocolate milk/hot egg & sausage sandwich for the kids & chai tea for me. Then we attended a Christmas concert by a group of middle school kids. Of course, we had to make a stop at our favorite toy store, ride the cars & play educational computer games at the library.



Sophia giving Gerritt a ride


Sophia discovered her new favorite past time at the toy store - playing with the Quadrilla


Gerritt enjoys riding the recently added Ferrari


We also returned due books & then selected new ones to enjoy for the next month. Gerritt is into the superheroes now, so after renewing his top two favorite books twice, I eventually had to return them. :-)

DC Super Friends: Brain Freeze! by J. E. Bright (Gerritt's favorite)
Batman: The Story of The Dark Knight by R. Cosentino (Gerritt's favorite)
Bounce by Doreen Cronin & Scott Menchin
My Dog Lyle by J. Goldfinger
Goldilocks & the Three Bears by James Marshall
One Brown Bunny by Marion Bauer
Tales From Radiator Springs: Step 1 & Step 2 Books - A Collection of Six Early Readers by various authors (Gerritt's favorite)
ABC: Letters in the Library by Bonnie Farmer
No Place for a Pig by Suzanne Bloom
The Green Frogs (a Korean folktale) by Yumi Heo
Someone Bigger by J. Emmett
Where Do I Sleep? A Pacific Northwest Lullaby by J. Blomgren
Red Riding Hood by J. Marshall
A Very Brave Witch by A. McGhee & H. Bliss
A Pig is Big by D. Florian
Bear in Sunshine by S. Blackstone
The Mitten by J. Brett (a Ukranian folktale)

Another productive day & just 10 days left until Christmas!