A Visit with Santa

Hannah was excited for her annual visit with Santa!  We went to our local mall which was decorated beautifully. 

She was pretty quiet when it was her time to visit Santa but she did eventually open up and share her wishes with him. 

We tried out a new ice cream place in the mall afterwards and it was delicious!  I’m sure the shake we share would have got 2 thumbs up if her other hand was free!  It’s safe to say we’ll be back!

A Visit with Santa

Hannah was a little unsure about visiting Santa this year but decided Sunday that she’d like to try.  When we got to the mall it took her about 10 minutes to gather her courage but once she set her mind to the visit you’d never know she’d been nervous! 

For a look back at previous visits with Santa, look here.

Christmas Eve and Christmas Morning 2014

What a wonderful age 5 is!!!  Hannah was super excited about Christmas and all that it entails!

Christmas Eve she was a busy, busy little girl!  After baking reindeer cookies for Santa

she went outside and put carrots on the front steps for the reindeer.

These are the adorable notes Hannah left for Santa and the reindeer.

‘Der Santa. I hop you delivr the prsnts. (Love Hannah with hearts on the other side)’  (Dear Santa, I hope you deliver the presents. Love Hannah)  LOL – That’s my girl!!  I asked her later what her note was about and she said wanted Santa to safely deliver the presents all over the world. Hehe!

‘Der Raders, I hop you fli safli. Lov Hannah’ (Dear Reindeers, I hope you fly safely.  Love, Hannah’)

We went to Christmas Eve service at church and then to a house party at a friends home.  I don’t think I’ve missed this party in 20 years!

Christmas morning Hannah woke up around 7am and immediately realized that it was Christmas morning!  We quickly ran downstairs and the fun began!

After our stockings she insisted I open her gift first!  It’s the pretty one on the right above with the blue and white heart made from jewels.  She made everything in her gift and it was from her heart.  So, so sweet!!!  First she coloured the bag the gift was in.

Inside the bag was a beautiful bead necklace and more decorated foam hearts than I could count!!

The gift she chose to open first was a 2 wheeled Tinkerbell scooter from Santa.  Oh boy was she excited!!  Towards the end of the video I have to giggle when she offers to take the scooter to the garage door because she’s going to wait until summer to ride it.  That’s a Canadian kid for ya!  Even though it was the warmest Christmas in years she was sure she’d have to wait until spring or summer to ride her new scooter!

This was also the year of Princess Lego for Hannah!

She received the ‘Disney Eye Found It’ game and I’m so glad we had an opportunity to play it a couple of times before we had to leave the house.  It’s a neat game as it’s played together as one team so it’s great for team building.  We lost both games but next time that game better watch out!!

As we were preparing to go to Auntie Carol and Uncle David’s for breakfast Hannah checked on her reindeer carrots and was excited to tell me that the reindeer had eaten them!  Cool!!

What a special morning with my amazing girl!!!  And…the day had just begun!

A Visit with Santa

Hannah visited Santa for the first time this year when we were in FL and we went again last night to a local mall.  She surprised me yesterday morning by changing up what she said she was going to ask Santa for and then followed through in person!    Not sure how Santa’s going to handle that one!

2014 (5yo)

And now the walk down memory lane…

2013 (4yo)

2012 (3yo)

2011 (2yo)

2010 (1yo)

2009 (9 months old)

Merry Christmas!

Visit with Santa 2013

Hannah was excited when she found out she was going to visit Santa last night!!  For weeks she’s had fun circling gift ideas in wish books, browsing through the toy area at stores, taking pictures of things she would like for Christmas and even drawing pictures for Santa.  When she found out that she was actually going to see him she was a cute combination of over-the-top excited and shy all at the same time.  She suddenly wasn’t too sure she actually wanted to talk to the Jolly Old Man himself or just mail her letter to him.  After a little encouragement she was ready to go so we stopped at the house to get her changed and tidy her hair after a day of play at school.

Nana found this adorable dress for her when we were in FL and we both knew it was perfect for Hannah!

After this quick photo shoot t home awe headed to the mall to visit Santa!  Hannah was so excited although kept changing her mind about what she would tell him she wanted for Christmas. 

In the end it didn’t really matter as she was too shy to say much to him but Santa did a great job of asking her questions until they found something she would like.  She loves stuffed animals right now so he was right with her when he suggested a new stuffed animal!

And because this is always fun….

2012 – 3yo

2011 – 2yo

2010 – 1yo

2009 – 9 months old (No Santa photos this year as she’d only been home a few weeks and I didn’t want to frighten her.)

Santa Claus is Coming to Town!

Last night after having our Christmas card pictures taken I decided to take advantage of Hannah being dressed up and we drove to a local mall to visit with Santa!
So far every time Hannah has seen Santa this year he has been in a ‘paw-wade’ so I wanted to prepare her a bit that he would be visiting with her rather than just waving from a float.  I captured this quick bit of adorable video while she was in the car.  Truly, her sweet, wonderful, precious personality is contagious and I can’t help but smile every time I hear her sweet voice!  She was so excited and just wanted to wrap this up so that she could get on with the fun of visiting with Santa!

I love that this year the two things she consistently says she’s going to ask Santa for are ‘underpamtsl (heh!!) and clothes.  In particular, pyjamas.  She says hers are too small.  I guess the 3T’s I had her in last week were a little on the snug side so the new 4T’s are fitting the bill.  And yet, she would like more.  Oh, if only her wish lists would remain so simple and unselfish in the future!
Our mall has a wonderful area for visiting Santa and they’ve made an effort to make the waiting area as child friendly as possible.  There are games, colouring sheets and a TV playing Christmas movies.  The time flies by for the kiddos as they wait which in turn means it flies by for mommy too!  Another bonus is that the free(!) pictures and video are emailed to you the moment you complete your visit with Santa.  It doesn’t get better than that! 
Hello big guy!
Hannah was excited about being able to talk to Santa although whenever I asked her if she wanted me to go with her or if she wanted to sit on his lap alone she always said she wanted mommy with her.  I was happy to do that so went prepared with that plan.  When it was our turn I went in and put down our coats and my purse and when I looked up this was what I saw!
She was a little hesitant but had easily walked up to Santa all by herself and allowed him to pick her up.  She didn’t talk to him when she was on her own but I was still so pleased that she was comfortable visiting with him!  Way to go Hannah!!  Here’s the video they captured of Hannah’s visit with Santa.

A final pic with all of us together! 
Christmas celebrations and preparations are in full swing for Hannah and I!  I hope you’re enjoying the season too while still remembering the true Reason for the Season.

Going to Work with Mama

I’m thankful to work at a place which encourages us to bring our children to work on Christmas Eve day.  After 22 years of going in on my own on the 24th, today all that changed and it was amazing to walk to work with Hannah in her stroller and realize that finally it was me who was taking my child to work!!  I’m a mom and I am still thankful to God every single day for allowing me the awesome privilege of being Hannah’s mom!

With those thoughts close in my mind seeing this brought tears to my eyes.

I didn’t even remember that these beads will still on a shelf below my desk until I saw Hannah playing with them.  When I realized what she was doing tears immediately sprang to my eyes.  For those who may not have been following my blog while I waited for Hannah, each of these beads represented 1 day of files that China had to match before I would receive Hannah’s referral.  These beads moved painfully slowly but I can tell you without a word of a lie that Hannah was worth every single second of the wait as truly she is the one and only child that God was preparing for me.  She is my daughter and in His perfect timing He brought us together.  Thank you Lord!!

Hannah decided to see what it was like to be Mama working in the world of telephony.  She looks like a natural and is already multi-tasking.

After working for a bit it was time to go find Auntie Norma and give her a Christmas hug.

Hannah and I were both surprised when Santa took time out of his busy schedule to visit Mama’s work!  At first she was a little concerned so I reassured her that I’d be happy to go with her to visit Santa

but after watching a few of the other children go up to visit Santa on their own she wiggled out of my arms and ran up to him!

Hannah didn’t get brave enough to actually talk to Hannah but she did pose for a couple of pics

and gave him a big hug before waving 'bye!’ 

Wow….what a difference from just a month ago!

Milk and Cookies for Santa

Following last year’s tradition, Hannah left out milk and cookies for Santa that she was sure he would like!

2010

2009