dear santa

I had an "oh crap" moment last week where it occurred to me that we were quickly running out of time to get Britton's picture taken with Santa. I went into a glazed unconsciousness when even considering the idea of taking her into our closest mall - the Parks at Arlington. No doubt any line for Santa would be out the door and while the mall boasts some upscale stores, the last time I was there I was witness to not one, but TWO shoplifting arrests. Another close mall, the Highlands, has a Santa, but their hours are only noon to 6:00 p.m. And, according to their website, Santa "takes a break to feed his reindeer" from 1:00 p.m. - 2:00 p.m. and 5:00 p.m.- 6:00 p.m. So, basically, Santa is union.

We checked out an outdoor mall called Uptown Village and decided that it was the plan for Saturday. Grandma and Grandpa came with us, and we got there about 15 minutes early. They have those water fountains kids love in the summer:



But this is winter, and while Texas it is still cold (except for today where I wore a tee-shirt in the sun while my family on the east coast was covered in snow). But Britton doesn't care that we're there to see Santa, or that it's 50 degrees, or that I don't want her getting in the water because this girl will find water even if she is in a desert. And then play in it, pouring it down the front of her shirt, all while excusing her activities with the most beautiful and innocent "uh oh". Luckily, Grandpa and Grandma saw the water too, and diverted Britton's attention to the popcorn shop.

And then we subjected the poor girl to Santa, a man she is not familiar with, really knows nothing of, and she's already starting to get that strangers are BAD PEOPLE so she's not quite sure. I warned Santa as I approached, and he said it wasn't the first time and he totally got it. I told the lady taking pictures to be ready as any picture would need to be taken quickly. We ended up with this:



My trooper! We totally hooked her up with a gingerbread cookie and a playground trip for all her hard work.

This is a statute of a girl and her dog on a bench. Britton sat next to them and put her hand on the dog as if to pet it! She's also clutching the gingerbread cookie that she made last for a good 30 minutes.