Inspired by Mama Kat’s Writer’s Workshop.

Prompt 4) Santa of Christmas past.  Share the previous years Santa photos…what has changed over the years?

Tyler was born September of 2006 and seeing Santa has been hit or miss for us over the years.  Nothing could be cuter than an infant Tyler in Santa’s arms, right?  Wrong, according to Grant!  I never thought Grant would turn out to be the overprotective parent in our relationship.  “You are not going to give our child over to some old man who might drop him. NO WAY!”

Next Christmas, at 15 months old, Tyler makes it to Santa. As you can see the two got along famously.

I think the next year when Tyler was just a little over two, my illnesses were hitting me hard. Grant refuses to wait in line for anything including Santa Claus, so we skipped it that year. That was also the year when Tyler was hit with a horrendous stomach virus and was so sick he didn’t even want to open his presents for almost a week.  Awww.  I am thankful that Tyler was too young to remember anything about that Christmas!

Christmas of 2009 was marred by the H1N1 flu virus, the one which no one was vaccinated for.  Grant’s overprotectiveness kicked in again.  “Tyler is not going to see Santa!  He’s a germ factory!”  I wondered how we would be able to avoid Santa who seemed to be everywhere.  Sure enough, as I took a three year old Tyler to buy boots he informed me, “Santa’s here.”  “I know, honey, but we’re here to buy boots.”  I felt terrible.  After getting his boots we had to pass Santa again.  There was no line.  Santa was just sitting there!  I couldn’t stop my son, but as luck would have it he told me he did not want to sit on Santa’s lap, he just wanted to talk to him!  And so they did, man to man.

“What do you want for Christmas?”  “‘Piderman!”  I translated.  “Oh and have you been a good boy all year?”  “Yes”, said a very serious Tyler.  Then Tyler saw the rubber duckies with Santa hats and asked if he could have one, and Santa gave him one.  Then Tyler just said goodbye.

So, with the barest amount of germs exhanged, Tyler got to see Santa that year.

Christmas 2010

I am glad I have a blog because I didn’t remember what happened last year until I took a look at my Santa 2010 entry! Last year, Tyler had smartened up and had a long wish list. $50.00 worth of pictures and a Santa frame later we were off to take his holiday portraits at JCPenney.  As we were going along Tyler said, “I forgot to tell Santa I wanted Wolverine and the Six-Armed Spiderman ”  “It’s okay, honey, Santa is magic, he knows your whole list, he’ll get you those things.”  Tyler became more and more upset.  I couldn’t believe this but I was going to take my child BACK to see Santa!  When it was our turn AGAIN, I explained Tyler’s issue.  So Tyler sat on Santa’s lap AGAIN, and mentioned his last two wishes.  They even shook hands on the deal.

Christmas 2011

This year, Tyler was a little nervous, wanting to make sure he looked clean for Santa and for a few seconds he wasn’t sure he wanted to be on Santa’s lap.  But the two connected and Tyler asked for his #1 wish; another Leapster Explorer.  He had thrown his on the floor so many times in frustration that he had finally broken it.  “I got angry”, he told Santa.  Santa told him that it was okay to be angry once in a while but that he had better be careful once he gets his new computer.

And of course, that new computer will be under the tree for him Christmas Day.