We love Santa!

(I started this posted on December 16, and then promptly forgot it.  That's how it goes, I guess.)

You know, there are a lot of great things about Indiana.  I love so many things, especially now that we are finishing up residency and every month here is our last November, or our last December.  But, if I had to make a list of things I love about Indiana, these two would be in my top ten:  Soelbergs and The Children's Museum.  My first visit to TCM (with the Soelbergs) was when Olivia was only 10 months old, and there have been many since.  Including the most recent one that included. . . 

. . . A VISIT WITH SANTA!

Now, we're pretty attached to our South Bend Santa.  He is perfect: kind and friendly and soft-spoken and incredibly photogenic.  However, The Children's Museum Santa may just be the best Santa on the planet.  

Mimi and Jenna (shunning the idea of sister pairs and gleefully sharing Santa's lap with their "cousin") told Santa what they wanted.

  

Olivia (looking incredibly tall) and her teeny friend Libster also shared their wishes.

And this what endeared me forever.  Bella was nervous about sitting on Santa's lap, but she wanted to sit on a stool next to his chair.  Santa scooted himself off his big comfortable armchair and planted himself on a little stool right next to Bella and had the sweetest 5-minute conversation I've ever seen.  I'll love him for the rest of my life.

Speaking of Bella, this little crazy-pants in the too-large goggles slipped away from Sara (poor Sara!) while I was nursing Maddie and had to be retrieved from the "Lost and Found."  Sara felt horrible until she watched Bella disappear 7 or 8 more times, including one expedition to an open elevator where she nearly transported herself 3 floors away, and another adventure in the boys' bathroom.  

We made some trips down the Yule Slide.

Santa whispered the secret of the slide to the big girls--the one on the left is faster.

We were lucky enough to meet some more friends from Bloomington.  It was loads of fun.  Maybe we'll all have to fly back in next Christmas?