November 23, 2018

Santa at Kitty Hawk Kites November 23, 2018

Just back from spending 4 great hours at Kitty Hawk kites dressed in the big red suit. We had more children than I've ever had there. We had a line of 4 to 6+ families starting at 10 that was there until 12:30 and after that there was steady traffic with never a time longer than 2 minutes without someone who wanted to see Santa. Did a couple of pictures with dogs today, which always fun for me! Of course one of the challenges when you have a line is to keep from rushing the child you are with because others are waiting. My philosophy, and I apologize if I have said this before, but it is worth repeating. I feel when I have a child before me, it is my mission to let them know they are the most important person in the world to me, because they are! And you don't rush that! So I didn't and it all worked out. The weather was cool this afternoon, I wore an extra layer underneath for the first time in North Carolina. Usually I'm battling 70 degree temps and I probably will again before Christmas.

The day started off with a number of refusals, they seem to run in clusters as one child sees the one ahead in line fussing then they will do the same. Once again Legos were one of the most requested items, closely followed by Barbie's today anyway. I have made it a practice to ask which Barbie they want and how many they have. That way the parents get a little more info on the situation. When I asked one little girl how many Barbies she had, she told me that she had 100! We joked that after she got the one this one she could paint black spots on them and have Dalmatians. There were also requests for the generic Baby Doll and LOL dolls were popular today also. Had a few requests for American Girl Dolls and one little one asked for an American BOY Doll!

There were some requests for animals, alive and stuffed, like dogs and cats and one each bird, and a Horse! By far the most unusual request was a girl that asked for a FROG! I loved the look on Mom and Dad's faces on that one!

Computers, laptops, tablets and phones were very popular also. One little guy wanted an iPhone X and an iPhone 5. I asked if he was going to put a phone to each ear. As usual, I explained that Mom and Dad had to OK any phone requests, since they end up paying for it.

Slime was also a request of several youngsters, rainbow and purple and other colors! Because I had read something about there being dangerous stuff to ingest in slime and did tell the first one to ask for it, that she had to be sure not to eat it. I got such a look from her and she said "Silly, Slime is not for eating!" So I didn't add that warning again!

Then there were the requests for hoverboards, scooters, skateboards, surfboards under various names, longboard, Pennyboard, etc. With skateboards I always mention the need for a helmet also!

Under the unusual category, I was asked, for the first time ever, I think, what I wanted for Christmas. I explained after a long Christmas Eve all I wanted on Christmas was a nice cup of hot chocolate and a place to put my feet up!

Santa had several requests for Transformers, especially BumbleBee! One young man asked for a trailer for his Gator and after a moments thought he said he needed a hitch also! Another fellow asked for rock climbing shoes, and a little girl asked for a "real" guitar. Two brothers asked for a guitar and a drum set and I told Dad I would bring him plenty of ear plugs! An usually specific request was a little guy who wants "a skeleton that has a removable pumpkin head and also has a magic bow and arrow"

But I also had a first, a young lady asked me for something that I had never had requested! She wanted . . wait for it . . . a TYPEWRITER!

And that's the latest from Santa's lap!

PS: I don't know how but I forgot that today I had two separate people ask for world peace, one about 9, the other about 40 years old. A sign of the times, I guess!

Santa at Belk, November 10, 2018

November 12, 2018

Well, last Saturday was Santa's first appearance of 2018.  Belk always has a big sale over Veteran's Day and has Santa come to visit giving folks time to get pictures for their Christmas cards.

       It was a relaxing day with plenty of time to chat with the children, which was nice!  The very first wish by a lovely young lady was for a Christmas dress and some books.  There were a few requests for baby dolls and tractors were big Saturday!  One little girl wanted a telescope so she could look at the stars!  Another asked for a standup nutcracker because she had seen the movie.  Then there was the little guy that wanted a remote control...upon questioning him a bit I found out that he wanted a remote controlled robot... that he could then use to clean his room!

     Guns were also big this year, one young fellow wanted TONS of Nerf guns that he could use on his older brother!  One of the last little guys I had, asked for a gun that shoots fire and I can only hope it wasn't to use on his older brother!  And that's the latest from Santa's lap!

    

December 23, 2017, Part 3

As Saturday started, Santa received a message from a friend that her two little girls would like to see him. Well, the day was packed, but Santa came up with a way they could get together on the Manteo waterfront and the weather cooperated. So Santa was able to get some pictures with two beautiful girls in pink dresses and bare feet! And their Mom, it was the perfect ending to a great day wearing the Red!

December 23, 2017, Part 2

Santa is breaking up this final post into sections because there are several pictures I want to share with y'all. Of Saturday Santa's day started with a home visit to one of his favorite littles that he has know since she was born: And she had several friends too: From there Santa went to visit two of his favorite neighbors:

December 23, 2017 Part 1

Christmas Day seems appropriate for the last entry for this season! It has been probably my busiest season with about 40 appearances overall! As I reflect back on the times I have worn the big red suit, I feel, more than ever, the responsibility I bear when I am wearing it to bring joy to as many of our youngest and most vulnerable as possible. These last few days have really brought that home to me, so here is what Santa did to bring his season to a close.
On Friday, I visited a daycare to have fun with 15 little ones. It was a really good time and my favorite memory is of sitting with a little girl talking about what she wanted and she told me she wanted a blue baby doll. Her Mom was right there and the look on her face was as puzzled as mine. So I asked the little girl why she wanted a blue doll and there was no specific answer so I suggested she get a baby doll and name it Blue. This seemed to satisfy her and Mom breathed a sigh of relief since she wouldn't have to find a blue doll! Here's a picture of some of the group: