Christmas Prep

The holidays are upon us. Last weekend we got our Christmas tree (actually 3 trees), which Anastasia and I decorated together while Daddy rested and watched football. Anastasia is getting very excited for the day Santa comes. We've got an Advent calendar that she's been opening one door on every day. She loves counting how many days are left until we get to number 25.



There are other preparations in the works, too. Lots of gifts to buy, which Anastasia has been helping with. Shopping with her is sometimes challenging, but it's also fun to talk about all the gifts we're giving to everyone on our lists. We've picked out gifts for her secret Santa classmate, something for Daddy and something for Myney. We've also gotten some nice things for her cousins, who we're going to visit right after Christmas.

The other day, we went to visit Santa Clause at the mall. We've been to see this Santa every year since Anastasia was born, and the last two years, she's been resistant to sitting on his lap. This year, she initially said she didn't want to sit on his lap. She only wanted to stand in front of him and tell him what she wanted. When it was our turn, I introduced her to Santa and she told him that she's a nice girl, not a naughty girl. He asked her what she wants him to bring her. Her list, in it's entirety is:

1 - A teeny star for the top of her Christmas tree
2 - A lot, a lot, a lot of stickers
3 - Yellow, red, orange, purple and blue cars

Then Santa convinced her to sit on his lap for a picture. Will have to edit to add the picture later, it seems to have been mislaid in all the hullaballoo.