The Pocket Dictator went to meet ‘The Man’ this weekend. I refer of course to the man in the red suit. It’s all she’s talked about for days, and she gabbled excitedly as we patiently waited our turn at the Church Fair Santa’s Grotto. So I shouldn’t have been surprised that, as soon as we entered the semi-darkness of the Choir Room, every inch of which had been covered with fairy lights, that she became all shy and hid behind my legs. Dimples on the other hand was right in there, primarily because all she wants to do at the moment is stand, and Santa had an empty chair waiting next to him that was perfect support for her nine-month-old legs. She wasn’t fazed by the man with the slightly suspicious beard and oddly Kentish accent, because across from him was a woman with a camera. And boy does Dimples like a camera.
All of this was progress on last year when PD freaked out completely the moment she saw the Red Man, so that the photograph we got features me with a vast stomach and slightly stressed face wrestling PD, who was stiff as a board with a damp red face begging to be let out and the DH trying to work out how where the nearest exit was. I ended up being in this year’s picture, simply because it was the only way to keep PD in the shot. I thnk the reason she didn’t cry was because he gave her a present.
Naturally when she awoke this morning all she could talk about was Santa. It was, apparently, very important that we remember to leave carrots for the Reindeer and Mince Pies for Santa. Not forgetting the bone for his dog, result of us watching our new Disney DVD:
All the talk of Santa and his entourage led to the kind of panic that only a two-year-old can create: how would he know where to go? I, out of concern for the PD who looked like she might explode, the roof, which in all likelihood would collapse under the weight of a sleigh and eight reindeer (tiny or not) and my sanity, spent a few minutes teaching her how to use Google, and then a further few minutes making Reindeer Dust. That sorted, I had a moment of quiet.
Incidentally, if you have small children who love a) Santa b) dogs and c) sickly sweet musical numbers, then this is the DD [not a typo- that’s what PD calls them] for you. One of the Buddies series, Santa Paws is described as a “heartwarming movie about the power of giving and the true meaning of Christmas”. It’s the expected plot: Santa gets a dog for his birthday, they become inseperable, then they get separated and have to find each other again, confirming a lifelong friendship. Throw in a toy shop, a few orphans (with more than a little nod to Annie), happy ending and the magic of Christmas and you have a family-friendly classic that can be enjoyed again and again. In fact I am still humming the main number. It made me cry. Gah.
Day Six of the Christmas Countdown at Cafebebe. Check out the other posts.
Mine are the same when we see Santa!