Breakfast with Friends

Today was a full and very exciting day for one little man!  He played with friends at church, went to Jumpin' Jacks for a birthday party, saw his Sha briefly, and so much more,  but one of the highlights of the day was having breakfast with a few friends AND sitting on Santa's lap!  

(We have come a long way baby!!!)

He wanted to go back later today with his Spider-man costume on and show Spider-man.  

He said, "He'll think it's cool!" 

He refused to get in a picture with these two...but we had to follow them around and keep giving them high fives!  Woody finally let Hannan wear his hat!

 We were a little overwhelmed at first, so we had to pause for some face painting!

He finally warmed up to Elmo...He had talked all the way there about how he was going to hug
Elmo, and when we stepped in the door and saw him, Han dug his claws into me!  

This was actually a friend inside this suit, so she was super to let him take his time getting close.

He never wanted a photo with Mickey either, until later in the day...much after Mickey had gone back to the Clubhouse.  I didn't blame him for not being crazy about Minnie.  She scared me too!

He surely didn't mind posing with Snow White.  He, of course, isn't into the princess stories, but he asked me later if I had been a princess when I was a little girl.  I said, "Of course!", and just laughed!

We didn't get one on our camera with Santa.  I LOVED it though because both boys were smiling!  Hannan wasn't going to sit on his lap, but decided Eli couldn't sit there without him!  He told Santa he wanted a bike and that Santa said, "Alright!"--  So that meant he was getting one!

We have some friends who don't do the idea of Santa with their children, which I completely understand and respect.  Each family has to decide how to teach their children the true meaning of Christmas and what traditions they will incorporate.  We truly want our focus on Jesus.  We want our children to know the true reason for this season is our Savior who came to Earth as a tiny baby to live a sinless, beautiful life and die an ugly, gruesome death, only to Rise again breaking any hold that the enemy of our hearts could ever have on us, and adopting us into the family of God, if we would believe.  I am so excited to be celebrating Thanksgiving this week, and then beginning the Christmas season to Rejoice in this great gift!

I loved what a friend of mine said recently about Santa though.  "We believe in Santa with our imaginations (just as we do these fun characters above) but we believe in Jesus with our Hearts."