Dear Santa,

We went to visit Santa today. The kids were excited. They were dressed. They were brainstorming the best gifts to ask for from the jolly man himself. They practiced their "ho, ho, ho's" and we read 26 different Christmas books before we left the house. We looked at pictures from last year and talked about sitting on Santa's lap. I didn't want anyone to be afraid. They didn't seem scared. They were ready.

We got to the mall and Drew insisted he would rather play at the playground than see Santa. He told me "Mama, I think it's just going to be too crowded today. " Abby wanted to see Santa though so I bribed Drew with a snack and we got in line. Fifteen minutes later we were at the front of the line and Drew made a beeline for Santa. He jumped in his lap and was all smiles and already listing all the things he wants for Christmas. Abby, however, froze. Her face crumpled, tears sprung into her eyes, and she clung onto me for dear life.

Did she miss the part with all the preparation?

We are not scared of this man with the beard, little girl. We are not scared.

Except we were. But, then the photographer pulled out a spinning toy with lights and Abby was hooked. He told her she could play with it if she sat on Santa's knee. Well, clearly the child doesn't have any toys with lights on them at home because she jumped up next to her brother with lightning speed and pulled herself together quite nicely.

Drew had so much fun. He talked and talked about the things he would like Santa to bring him. He asked about Santa's beard and if it was "scratchy." He gave him lots of hugs and told him "Don't forget to make a birthday cake for Jesus...after you finish flying with all of your presents."

And then Santa asked Abby what she wanted for Christmas. "A telescope" she told him. He said, "Oh, do you want to look at the stars in the sky?" "No", she said, "I want to look for animals just like Diego does."

Maybe I should consider cutting down the amount of TV we watch.

You think?

Merry Christmas to you and yours!