I know him! I know him!!!! SANTA!!!!!!!!

I love the movie Elf. By far my favorite holiday movie. And I think that scene is my absolute favorite part. That and when the taxi bumps him. Cracks me up every time.

Anyways, Makenzie got to visit Santa for the first time today. This morning we attended a holiday party with the Mom’s Club. I slept in again, then got little Miss M decked out in her holiday gear. How adorable is she?!!!

I can’t get over it, either. I also can’t get over how fantastic Teri’s Pumpkin Gingerbread tastes!!! It was a huge hit with everyone and with good reason.

I made sure to munch on some, along with fruit, a couple of donut holes, and an egg/ham/cheese casserole. I love breakfast food!

Once we all finished breakfast the excitement began. SANTA!!!! It’s quite humorous to watch the reactions of the kids. It’s like 50/50 of screams of joy and screams of terror. I didn’t know what to expect with Makenzie – would she cry out in fear or not want to leave his side?

Totally the latter. She LOVED Santa! She kept trying to sneak closer to him during story time or back in the line to see him again.

Then, when he passed out a present to all of the kids, she became a huge fan. I told Peter we’re in trouble because now she will expect a gift from every Santa we visit.

And little miss needs to grow a few inches before hugging Santa again. That first picture looks totally inappropriate!

I’m so thankful Peter agreed to the whole Santa thing. His family never did Santa, based on religious purposes, and I can completely understand the foundation of their decision. Christmas is not about a jolly guy in a red suit and getting lots of presents. However, the magic of Santa is so special for children. I remember the excitement of Santa and didn’t want Makenzie to miss out on it. Plus, I didn’t want her to be the kid who ruins it for the other ones.

We came to the conclusion that Santa will be a part of our Christmas traditions, but that he will also have a meaning. Santa likes to give out presents to all the children of the world because he likes to show love like Jesus and give to others. That is who Santa is in this house. He hopes for the children to show love to others too and be thankful for Jesus. We also include traditions to say “Happy Birthday Jesus” and more often talk about Jesus than Santa in this household. It’s important to me to have the meaning, but also to have the fun and magic. So, there you go. More than you likely cared to know about our stance on Santa.

• If you celebrated Santa, what is one of your best Santa memories? Or how long did you believe?
• What’s your favorite meal of the day? Breakfast, lunch, dinner?

3 Poor Ways to Start the Morning

1) With another cold.

The whole lowered immune system during pregnancy thing has certainly taken its toll on me with the cold weather. I think this is my 3rd cold in the past 2 months?

2) With spam.

Are there really this many people out there spamming blogs with their ridiculous comments? And that would be after clearing it out 2x yesterday.

3) Forgetting to say “Happy Birthday” to your husband right away because of your exhausted, stuffy-headed haze.

I love you, Peter! Happy, happy, happy birthday!

3 Great Ways to Start the Morning

1) A green monster with breakfast to get in essential nutrients.

We don’t have OJ. I can’t take a lot of other remedies. Greens it is!

2) Bible reading.

I don’t think there’s a better book out there.

3) A hot shower in preparation of a hot lunch date with the birthday boy.

I like it scalding. Added bonus? It helps clear out the congestion.

How did your morning start today? What is the ideal way to start your day?