Photos with the Jolly Old Elf

We took Ella and Andrew up to Cabella’s after their dentist appointment to get pictures with Santa yesterday. I thought for sure that I had posted some of my childhood Santa pictures before. However, after glancing through some of my past Christmas themed blogs, I discovered that I hadn’t. For what it is worth, it was a quick glance, so there is the possibility that I missed them. If that is the case, I apologize for repeating.

I thought it would be fun to check out some of these amazing photos from the past –

I cannot be sure which of these photos was taken earlier, but I think it was this one.

My dad wrote on the back of this that I am “about 2 years old.

My all time favorite photo with Santa is this one, in which I am wearing the craziest pants ever.

I joke all the time that the reason I am crying is because of those pants! I am probably 3 here, but I cannot be sure.

After that time, my folks probably decided to wait a few years before trying to get a picture with Santa. The next one that shows up is from when I was 6 years old, and it is with my brother and I.

I’m sure that we probably had more taken of us, but I have no idea where they are. Maybe a family member has a copy of one somewhere, but I don’t think I do.

I don’t know that we really ever took my boys to get their photos with Santa when then were tiny. So Fast Forward to 2009. Dante’ would have been 7 and Dimitri is 2 in this one. My brother actually took the above photo and put it in a frame with this one of them. It’s cool to see just how much they boys look like us.

One year later, we took them again to get photos at the mall. I remember this Santa. He was SO good!

I want to say that this Santa was the same Santa that appeared at an office networking party my morning show co-host, Stephanie, and I emceed in 2007.

He sure looks like it to me. If it is, the picture above would have been taken 3 years prior to the one with the boys.

I found this one after I posted this blog! This must have been a year or two after the boy’s previous picture. They used to like their hair “spiked.”

Some of my favorite Santa pictures were not professional ones at all. Ella was born just before Covid hit at the world shut down. A good friend of mine was out doing an appearance as Santa and stopped by the house. I blogged about it here:

A Surprise Visitor

Jan was such a great guy. He passed away not to long ago. I can never thank him enough for making a special trip over for Ella. I miss him.

Andrew was only about 2 months old at Christmas last year. We went to Cabella’s and Covid was still a worry. They had a bench in front of Santa for the kids to sit on. There was no way he was going to be able to so that, so the entire family got our picture with St. Nick!

Ella knew that after her dentist appointment yesterday we were going to see Santa. She was very excited. We arrived about 30 minutes early for our appointment. I didn’t matter, there was no one there when we arrived and we were able to get right up for pictures. When Ella saw Santa, she yelled, “Hi Santa!” and ran up and gave him a hug! The photographer deserves kudos because she actually snapped a picture of that.

She made sure that he knew she wanted a “princess castle” for Christmas and then she sat on his lap. We placed Andrew on Santa’s knee and the tears started! The photographer snapped a few photos and we got the best one. It’s totally ok that he was crying. Like father, like son, right!? Ella never has cried when she has seen Santa, which still amazes me.

I think it came out cute. Maybe next year, they can talk about Twinkles, our Elf on the Shelf, and about how she reports things to him at the North Pole.

4 more sleeps till Christmas!!