Santa Claus Is Coming To Town

Despite what you are about to see in the following pictures, Joey is really in the Christmas spirit these days.  Whenever he sees or hears any reminder of Christmas he says, "Go see Santa now Mommy, ok?"  He's been saying this for a week.  Every mention of Christmas, trees, decorations, Santa, or the like.  Several times a day.  It's the first thing he asks for when he wakes up, and the last thing he talks about before he goes to bed.  After last year's visit though, I was hesitant to subject myself (and my children) to another less-than pleasant Santa encounter. Remember this:

Well, Joey was persistent.  His requests to visit Santa became more and more frequent, and I was running out of excuses.  Ron insisted that he would be fine.  He continually reminded me that he wasn't scared of the characters in Disney World, or Elmo on his birthday.  My will was getting weaker, and I just couldn't listen to any more "Go see Santa now Mommy, ok?" without taking the poor kid to go see Santa.  So off we went. 

After naptime yesterday we packed up the kids, headed on over to the mall, and got in line to hand our kids over to a large man, dressed in a red suit, with a southern accent.  I tried to prepare Joey while we were in the car.  I said things like, "Are you going to sit with Santa?" and "Santa is going to give you a present." Another one I tried was, "Santa is going to hold the babies too!"  Joey was in complete agreement at this point.  I got lots of "Yes, Mommy," "Oh-Kay," and "My sit Santa lap, ok?" He was so encouraging that I actually started to think that this might not go so badly afterall.

While we waited in line Joey froze.  He wouldn't say anything to me, Ron, or Santa's not-so-helpful elves.  He just stared at the strange man in the big red suit. I tried to remain positive, but deep down I knew how this would go.  I also knew that there was no turning back now.  We started with the babies.  Being fairly confident in the fact that they wouldn't cry, I handed each of them to Santa, then said in my most cheerful mommy voice, "Look Joey, the babies are sitting with Santa now!  C'mon, lets go sit with Santa now too!"  In a sad, scared, little voice Joey responded, "No, go nigh-nigh now."  Oh boy, I thought.  At this point I had no other choice.  I grabbed hold of him, tossed him onto Santa's lap, and jumped out the way so the "helpful elf" could capture the moment for us.  So without further ado, here's what happened next:

I actually love this picture.  I love it for so many reasons.  I love the absolutely miserable face on my son.  Given any other circumstance, someone might think that he was actually being tortured.  I love the way my daughters are just staring at him, as if to be saying, "What the hell is your problem, kid?"  I love the way that the strange man in the big red suit is looking straight ahead with his ever so cheerful smile, as if nothing terrible is happening.  I truly love this picture.

I knew the only way that I would be able to get Joey to stop crying and lessen the chance of doing any long term damage was to hold him and sit with Santa myself.  As I did that, Santa asked Ron to take hold of Olivia for a "nice family shot."  My husband looked at me as if to say, "I can't beleive we are putting ourselves through this."  Ron held onto Olivia and tried to lean into the picture with the rest of us.  At that point, Good Ole' Santa was nice and friendly in offering his knee.  "Aw, sit right here on my leg Son," he said to Ron.  "OH MY GAWD," I thought to myself as I thought of my 32-year old husband sitting on the lap of a strange man in a big red suit.  I thought I would burst out laughing right then and there.  Well, who can refuse a request from Santa?  Ron did as he was told, and carefully sat on the old man's leg while the "helpful elf" took yet another picture:

So there we are.  Me and Joey on one knee.  Ron and Olivia on the other.  And little Katelyn just hanging out in the middle with the strange man in the red suit.  I actually love this picture too.  I love the way that the three grown adults in the picture are smiling despite it all.  I love the way that it looks like my children have made a pact not to smile.  And most of all, I love that we went to a mall so far away from our old house that we had absolutely no chance of running into anyone we know.