Meeting the Big Guy
So Isaac went to the Natick Collection (the mall formerly known as the Natick Mall, but now it is all snooty) to see the Big Guy, the Head Cheese, the #1 elf--Santa. In my skeptical philosophy days I had toyed with the idea of no Santa, but as with most things Isaac, my desire to see him happy and relatively normal overrode my anti-everything instinct. In addition to seeing Santa we were going to do some Christmas shopping. Isaac was ready for the big picture, wearing the right clothes and everything:
Our ride there coincided with Isaac's big nap, the one in the morning, and usually he'll wake up when we get to our destination, whether he has slept the full two hours or not. Yesterday, however, he decided not to wake up and gave his Mom a chance to get a lot of the shopping done up front. Dad drove the Forester around Natick for about an hour and twenty minutes while Santa's Lil Helper slept. See, sleepy kid:
After that we met Mommy inside the mall which was just short of chaos. Santa was on a break so we did some more Christmas shopping. The Lego Store was a big pit stop as we had to get all sorts of gifts, including stuff for Isaac on Santa's behalf. Inside the Lego Store were probably 100 children and their parents. It was nothing short of pandemonium. Kids were crying, shouting, running, screaming, pulling, pushing, tugging, jumping up and down, and going full on Lego-crazy.
I can understand why. The Lego Store is AWESOME. The displays just about snag your eyeballs and the tables with tons of Legos tempt even me (if only the tiny chairs allowed for my giant frame). But, it is the "Help Ur Self" style bins in the back though that promise the up and coming builder the best selection of bricks they need. Even the totes lock together. Legos, are, without question, the greatest toys of all time. Their history and design is fascinating. The first modern Legos were released in 1958. They still work perfectly with the bricks of today. There are even fansites, including my favorite, Brick Brothers, for do-it-yourself builders. Brick Brothers is worth a check once a month. Some of their stuff is thought provoking, artistic, and controversial, such as the Lego Concentration Camp.
After the Lego store we went to get Isaac's picture taken with Santa. Two things were really funny, experiencing the Santa thing from this end. First, the kids and second, the adults.
We were standing in line for Santa when a girl probably about 4 or 5 was walking by. She was in a little velvet black dress and not really paying attention when the Santa display caught her eye. She looked at Santa and then froze for a second. Her eyes widened and her mouth opened. She tugged on her mom's sleeve and pointed. Her mom grabbed her arm and pulled just a little and the girl became unstuck, but she moved very slowly. She walked by putting her feet together and then spreading them out again as if she were on a ledge. Then she gave a tiny wave to Santa. She was awestruck. She had seen, what for kids, is undoubtedly the biggest celebrity in the world.
Based on the way the parents behaved, they too had just seen the biggest celebrity in the world. Even parents of kids smaller than Isaac, they addressed the man in the suit as, well, Santa. "Thank you, Santa" they would say, after their child or children got up from the photo op. "How are you doing, Santa." "Say hi to Santa Michael!" And there were all kinds of people. In front of us was the cutest little Asian girl (whose mother confided in us that last year's picture was so terrible "only grandma would like it") and behind us was a hipster couple with a tiny, tiny little baby maybe two months old. The parents would wave and jump up and down, shout, laugh, do just about anything (like the kids in the Lego store) to get their child to smile or pay attention.
Isaac did awfully good. He did not cry or whine. It was infernally hot though so his little checks blossomed like roses (one of Santa's frozen trees was actually a fan in disguise). The Santa was a good one, with a real beard and a nice (though not quite jolly) demeanor. The only issue was with the camera. It failed right when Isaac busted out that I-am-a-supercute-kid smile. We still got a very good picture, but it was not the best of the best.
Here is one of the few (like three) that Dad took (he lost his mind with excitement and forgot about the camera until the very end):
Overall it was a very good shopping day and a day I will never forget with the Santa picture. Isaac cried for a total of about 9 minutes, on the way back home before he fell asleep. He ate normally, pooped normally, and most important took both naps and both were the right length. I love that kid and I think his Mom does too.
Pictures and videos will be uploaded soon.
Our ride there coincided with Isaac's big nap, the one in the morning, and usually he'll wake up when we get to our destination, whether he has slept the full two hours or not. Yesterday, however, he decided not to wake up and gave his Mom a chance to get a lot of the shopping done up front. Dad drove the Forester around Natick for about an hour and twenty minutes while Santa's Lil Helper slept. See, sleepy kid:
After that we met Mommy inside the mall which was just short of chaos. Santa was on a break so we did some more Christmas shopping. The Lego Store was a big pit stop as we had to get all sorts of gifts, including stuff for Isaac on Santa's behalf. Inside the Lego Store were probably 100 children and their parents. It was nothing short of pandemonium. Kids were crying, shouting, running, screaming, pulling, pushing, tugging, jumping up and down, and going full on Lego-crazy.
I can understand why. The Lego Store is AWESOME. The displays just about snag your eyeballs and the tables with tons of Legos tempt even me (if only the tiny chairs allowed for my giant frame). But, it is the "Help Ur Self" style bins in the back though that promise the up and coming builder the best selection of bricks they need. Even the totes lock together. Legos, are, without question, the greatest toys of all time. Their history and design is fascinating. The first modern Legos were released in 1958. They still work perfectly with the bricks of today. There are even fansites, including my favorite, Brick Brothers, for do-it-yourself builders. Brick Brothers is worth a check once a month. Some of their stuff is thought provoking, artistic, and controversial, such as the Lego Concentration Camp.
After the Lego store we went to get Isaac's picture taken with Santa. Two things were really funny, experiencing the Santa thing from this end. First, the kids and second, the adults.
We were standing in line for Santa when a girl probably about 4 or 5 was walking by. She was in a little velvet black dress and not really paying attention when the Santa display caught her eye. She looked at Santa and then froze for a second. Her eyes widened and her mouth opened. She tugged on her mom's sleeve and pointed. Her mom grabbed her arm and pulled just a little and the girl became unstuck, but she moved very slowly. She walked by putting her feet together and then spreading them out again as if she were on a ledge. Then she gave a tiny wave to Santa. She was awestruck. She had seen, what for kids, is undoubtedly the biggest celebrity in the world.
Based on the way the parents behaved, they too had just seen the biggest celebrity in the world. Even parents of kids smaller than Isaac, they addressed the man in the suit as, well, Santa. "Thank you, Santa" they would say, after their child or children got up from the photo op. "How are you doing, Santa." "Say hi to Santa Michael!" And there were all kinds of people. In front of us was the cutest little Asian girl (whose mother confided in us that last year's picture was so terrible "only grandma would like it") and behind us was a hipster couple with a tiny, tiny little baby maybe two months old. The parents would wave and jump up and down, shout, laugh, do just about anything (like the kids in the Lego store) to get their child to smile or pay attention.
Isaac did awfully good. He did not cry or whine. It was infernally hot though so his little checks blossomed like roses (one of Santa's frozen trees was actually a fan in disguise). The Santa was a good one, with a real beard and a nice (though not quite jolly) demeanor. The only issue was with the camera. It failed right when Isaac busted out that I-am-a-supercute-kid smile. We still got a very good picture, but it was not the best of the best.
Here is one of the few (like three) that Dad took (he lost his mind with excitement and forgot about the camera until the very end):
Overall it was a very good shopping day and a day I will never forget with the Santa picture. Isaac cried for a total of about 9 minutes, on the way back home before he fell asleep. He ate normally, pooped normally, and most important took both naps and both were the right length. I love that kid and I think his Mom does too.
Pictures and videos will be uploaded soon.