"Santa, you know Ava. Ava, this is Santa Claus..."

I would definitely say that I am a sentimental person. When I was little I remember going to a school carnival and getting my face painted. Then of course, when I got home my mom made me take a shower. Boy did I love that face paint. I mean, it had become a part of me. Of course the water from the shower made the face paint start to come off. So, since that rainbow (and clouds) had made it's home on my cheek for a whole hour, it deserved to be saved. I remember taking the pieces of paint off of my cheek and putting them on the edge of the bathtub so they could hang for dear life. It was like watching my best friend dissolve before my very eyes.

I bring this up because it was ridiculous. Therefore, the sentimental moment that I had today won't seem so dramatic. Thanks to our dear friends Jenna and her Mommy Adrian, Ava and I (along with Adrian and Jenna, of course) went to the library for crafts and story time with Santa Claus. Now, I think I may have at some point mentioned Ava's run in with Santa (the plug into the wall species) at Home Depot. He was shakin' his hips (and shakin' it twice....sorry, couldn't resist...come on! You hear it, too) and singing. He had to have been 6 feet tall, this Santa. Anyway, Ava just sat there and watched in amazement. All that to say, I was looking forward to the first moment she would see the real Santa. I was a little nervous because I predicted there might be a meltdown. After all, a couple of weeks in Sunday School, Ava had a breakdown when "the man with the guitar came in"...those were her nursery lady's actual words. So, I thought Santa might freak her out a little bit. Well, Lil'Bit got all dressed up for her Santa. Complete with tights and shiny shoes. And actually, the dress she wore was made out of the same fabric that one of her Daddy's outfits was made out of when he was little like her (thanks, Granna!). The girls loved making Christmas cards and eating cookies and drinking ginger ale...I mean this was a high class party! But just prior to that was my moment. There must have been 25 kids there all ranging in age. Everyone was sitting on the floor waiting for the magical moment when Santa would come through the doors. I could feel my heart pounding through my chest. Everything was in slow motion. Just kidding. I 'm just trying to add some dramatic effect. But then there he was. This Santa was beautiful. And when he came in, those kids cheered and laughed and smiled. I looked down at Ava's face and she just looked at him in awe. I'm serious when I say I got a little lump in my throat. I mean, out of all the real Santa Clauses that she is going to see, this was her first. I just took a few seconds to look around at all of the precious faces. One little girl turned to another and looked right into her eyes and said, "That's Santa Claus." Almost as if she was saying "Now, he's the one...he's the one you want to be good for." Oh, my sweet precious baby.

Santa read a book called "Things Santa Can't Do." Ava and I learned that Santa can't shave, he can't drive a car, he can't remember what Mrs. Claus told him to get at the grocery store, he can't use a door knob, and he can't wear Bermuda shorts and t-shirt (except when he goes on vacation to Hawaii after Christmas is over). Very informative book, I think you can find it at your own local library in the reference section by the encyclopedia.

Anyway, I could tell this Santa had been doing this for awhile. Not just because he broke down and told us his age (which was something like 1,723 years old...) but because of the disclaimer he gave us Mommies and Daddies. He said, "Now Mommies and Daddies, if your child says they don't want to sit on my lap, they probably don't want to sit on my lap." So he invited us to sit in the picture with them. Whiiiiich is exactly what happened. The closer we got to Santa, the bigger the frown my Ava got on her face. She screamed. And she screamed. I sat with her, and she screamed. But that Santa was so sweet. He looked at her and he just said, "You know? You just don't understand it yet, do you? And that's okay." We got our kodak moment and we were done. And Ava continued to hold a grudge until we got to Chick-fil-a. But it was a fantastic morning and yet another bonding experience that I shared with my Ava. We missed you Daddy! And thank you Adrian, for driving and for eating lunch with us. We had a blast with you and Jenna-bo-benna!

So here are a collection of pictures from the day. In the haste of things, I couldn't check the pictures to make sure I got any good usable ones (and Keith's camera is a little too high-tech for me so there was a menu blocking my picture on the viewer screen! I couldn't figure out how to get it off and thought the camera would explode if I pushed a wrong button.) Enjoy the sequence with Santa. I absolutely adore my baby girl.

We love our Jenna! (by the way, might I say how excited the girls look?)

"oooohhhhh no Mommy....here he comes." (cue music from Jaws...)

I really look like I am experiencing joy from this situation. The whole thing was sort of funny, I'll admit it. She was just clinging on to me with everything she had. I have to laugh at this picture, too because it looks like I'm just hangin' with Santa like we're sitting my living room. Well, you know, I'm tight with Santa...we're like this. I mean, he did say that he was going to deliver a bright new ToyWatch with crystals bordering the pearled face and a white wrist band that he found in the watch department at Nordstrom. He did say that. And Santa wouldn't want to let me down. He said that, too. I'm kidding friends...well not really, but Santa did aleady go in on the treadmill with Keith. And you can't run on that with a fancy watch.

"What?" Asked Santa. "You want a duck for Christmas?"

"Ohhhhh why do these Mommies do this to their babies?"

Thanks for reading. May your days be filled with sentimental memories.