On Friday night, we needed to buy a present for a birthday party the next day. I wanted to go to the mall after the trip to the Mastermind Toy Outlet. I told Ken that I wanted Christmas outfits for the girls, and that I wanted to check out Santa. According to the website for the Pickering Town Centre, Santa had been moved upstairs because they were repairing his castle after a flood in the lower level of the mall.
Everything changed when the girls walked in and saw Santa in all his glory. Fiona had been talking all week about Santa. All week. She was so, so, so excited. The girls danced around looking down at Santa in his castle.
I went into Gymboree for my annual Christmas outfit shopping, and the girls begged to change into their new outfits and see Santa right then. It was 8:30 or so at night. A sensible Mom would have said no. But I wanted to seize the moment. Fiona was so excited.
We went into the bathroom, wiped their faces, put on their cute outfits and went downstairs. Everyone was happy until we got half way around the castle. There was no line, Kate and Alice skipped ahead with Ken, and Fiona stopped dead in her tracks. Her face fell. Panic took over. She looked at me and said "I don't want to see Santa."
A sensible Mom would have walked away. Fiona absolutely lost her mind. She cried, she lay on the floor in the fetal position. When I tried to pick her up she flailed and cried and squirmed. The last two years (2015, 2014) Kate held onto her while she cried. If I had tried to get Kate to hold her, they both would have been injured.
There was nothing calm or rational about my thinking. Fiona wouldn't be in the picture, Christmas was ruined.
I've let go of so many traditions this fall with the move and this felt like one more tradition I was going to lose and I just shut down. It was over. There was no do-over, it was done.
I went ahead and had them take a photo.
Sunday, at church I started to regain my perspective. Santa photos are fun, but sharing the light of Christ, that's what it's really about. Loving one another, helping those around us feel loved. Serving each other and looking out for each other, all year and at this time of year too.
I started to feel guilty about posting that Fiona had ruined Christmas. Of course she didn't ruin Christmas, she just didn't want to sit anywhere near Santa. I started to also think about second chances - that is the true gift of our Savior. We never have to settle. We can be forgiven and improve, there's always a second chance, and a third, and a fourth...
I started to talk to Fiona, come up with a plan. She was game.
Monday night, after dinner the girls put their Christmas outfits back on. Kate brought her letter for Santa, Fiona brought her little Santa for moral support and we went back to the mall.
When it was our turn I told the greeter of our needs: 1. Santa was not to talk to or in anyway acknowledge Fiona's existence. 2. Santa needed to move over as far as he could in the chair, Kate would sit beside him, Alice beside her, and Fiona beside Alice.
And it mostly worked! Go Fiona! She was brave and I got my Santa photo with all three of my girls.
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