Eleventh Post of Christmas

Today we went to see Santa at the mall. We actually went to the mall for another purpose and used Santa as a "bribe" as in "if you're good and if we have time, we can go see Santa!"..."Yay!" they all screamed, even Jack. But once we got up to the "North Pole" they were placing ten foot tall nutcrackers by the entrance and hanging a sign that said "Be Back in 1 Hour"

"Oh well, I guess its closed" I rolled my eyes and sighed. But Zoe ran to the exit and said, "No Mommy, look we can get in this way!" just as she and Athena wiggled past an 18 year old elf and caught sight of the big man himself. "Please" I said when I caught up "Just one picture before you go on break?" the elf shrugged okay. A Christmas miracle.

But it didn't really matter because Athena was already talking to Santa. I have no idea what she was saying, I was negotiating with the elf and couldn't hear her, she made a bee line straight for him and told him something that was very urgent apparently, he nodded in agreement and I have no idea what he agreed to.

Zoe was hesitant, not as immediately familiar as Athena, but still not terrified. But Jack wanted no part of it. He clung to Mimi like a chimpanzee and all at once got hot. Mimi whispered soothing things like "Don't worry, you don't have sit on Santa's lap." Ummm, yea, you do.

See Mimi has the fear, she remembers all to clearly her total petrification of the man in red. I had to speak with Santa alone many a year, because she refused and she wasn't going to force Jack to go through her childhood horrors. But I was.

And Jack hated it. Poor baby. But its an awesome picture.