3 years of Santa

I had absolutely zero hope of getting a picture with my 2 children on Santa's lap this year. I'm sure if you read here regularly, you can imagine why I didn't expect much out of Katy. A man, a beard, a funny hat. Not to mention that this year she was able to communicate her fear. She told me, "I don't want to sit on Santa's lap, Mommy. I watch other people sit on his lap." So I assured her, "That's fine, Katy, you don't have to sit on Santa's lap if you don't want to." And I wasn't going to make her, even though I really wanted a picture.

So then my friend Abigail invited me to go with her (and oh, you must click over and see her daughter's CLASSIC get-me-the-heck-off-this-guy's-lap face), so I asked Katy again if she wanted to go. To my surprise, she got excited and said yes! She thought long and hard about what to bring for Santa (?) and finally decided on her Elmo doll. She didn't smile by any stretch of the imagination, but at least she didn't hesitate or cry.

Here's a review:

2006 - Katy is 7 months old. The real picture is on a hard drive that I can't get to right now, but here's a side view that gives you the idea. She loved Santa, stroked his beard and stared at him. I remember Santa said she "made the rest of the day worth it."

2007 - Katy is 19 months old. I had to crop Brian out of the picture because Katy wouldn't go up to Santa by herself. This Santa didn't talk, even when I spoke to him and asked him a question. I have to wonder if that made Katy even more uncomfortable?

2008: Katy is 2.5 years, David is 8.5 months. While we were waiting in line Santa kept abruptly shouting, "HO HO HO!!" and I really hoped he would stop when it was our turn. David grinned as usual. While we were waiting in line, I noticed other moms taking pictures with their own cameras, so I assumed it was allowed. Only after I snapped my photos did I realize that the "camera policy" then required a minimum $19.99 purchase from them. Tricksy.