Don't you tell a single soul....what I'm going to say...

(Thanks to my new Post Ally Santa,...they have made their peace with the little guy in red!)


Every year during the Christmas Holidays, myself along with my three children included, could be found waiting in the long lines along with every other child and their desperate mom at the Malls paying our dues to earn that perfect picture with the Mall Santa.

I,... sipping on my Starbucks mocha, and the kids,.... sipping on their little cups of hot cocoa, with a few spats here and there from the pure boredom that long Santa lines tend to bring out in even the most perfect of children including my own, who I might add right here, were not as into these Santa pictures as I and all the other moms were....but we Santa photo hungry mom's would press on none the less. Bribes, lies and promises I would never be able to keep would be made just to get that perfect picture. I would even sink as low as to use my December Birthday that I was blessed with to get that picture, note; all Santa picture moms really should have December Birthdays and if not, well then that could be your lie! I could be heard by every mom with in an ears shot, "Now children, this would be the all time perfect gift for your poor, old, gift-less mom here, I mean after all today is my Birthday, batting my big eyelashes at them." Did I mention desperate?

I have the most adorable Christmas scrapbook full of beautifully decorated pages and in the middle of each of those beautiful pages is a picture slapped smack dab in the center of each page, displaying two crying, terrified, red faced, red eyed, sad teary eyed children and one older brother looking a little scared himself, not to mention the searching looks from his eyes for the closest exit off the Santa Stage...

So when my kids were finally old enough to get it, that Santa really wasn't such a bad guy, it was a little to late for any more Santa pictures for this moms books. YEP, I will never forget the last time I talked these three into a Santa picture....deep breath,... deep sigh,... deep sorrow,.... So there we were, all standing in the long line at the Mall when the older brother pretty much made it clear that this was the last time he'd be partaking in this Santa picture taking ritual ever again, and I'm not real sure, but he may of mumbled never again in his life at this point in time as well.

I'm still to this day not sure if it was while the oldest was standing in the Santa line up, that he surveyed the surrounding children's height, and immediately pointed out the fact not only to myself but also his brother and sister that the oldest kid in line came up to about their knees or maybe it was when some girl Andrew recognized from school noticed him and yelled out "hi Andrew" as he was in the line with his brother and sister waiting to get his picture taken with the Mall Santa! (And just in case the girl is reading this blog on Andrews behalf, he really was in that "Santa line up" against not only his will but his better judgement.)

Yep, that was pretty much it for the oldest son and Santa pictures. I vividly remember looking all three of them in the eye and kindly reminding them as they all tried to crawl underneath the big red velvet roped off area between myself and the Santa line, that they owed me big time for a book full of really bad Santa Photos, not to mention it was my Birthday! ( The December Birthday really is what got me that last Mall Santa photo!)


So the point of this blog is for you moms standing in my shoes right now with a Scrapbook full of really bad Santa pictures! For those of you with the perfect pictures, this might be a good time for you to leave....


A couple years ago we were all down town Seattle at the Pike Place Market and I'd noticed this really cool looking Santa just standing in front of the restaurant on Post Ally Street...hmmmm I wondered....YES..... PERFECT..... KIDS!!!!!!

Come...follow me...Right....Now!

Here you are folks, drum roll please....meet our new Santa! This was so perfect that I couldn't of been more thrilled, I mean really,... you'd think I'd just won the lottery or something!


So here I give you our second annual Santa Photo with my kids...OK, so Andrew still isn't in this one but I threw Elliot's girlfriend aka son snatcher in the mix and I still have three kids in the picture, no red eyes, no tears and not one of these kids was afraid of this little Santa! I pretty much had to pull them off the poor guy!


So yes, there is indeed, hope for us moms who still long to fill those Christmas scrapbooks with good Santa pictures, happy faced children Santa pictures, not so scary Santa pictures, pffffft,...not only were there no lines,... he didn't even charge me! This may very well decrease our family therapy time that I am pretty sure all my children are going to put me through once they all have great paying jobs some day... only freshmen in College...Ahhhhh,...I have a few years yet.


I just hope this Post Ally Santa doesn't become to popular, I'd really hate to make my kids start standing in long lines again!