Santa and a Shot

When I was a kid my mom always took me to the mall to get my picture taken with Santa Claus.  I remember really enjoying getting to sit on his lap every year and tell him what I wanted for Christmas, and it's a tradition I want to continue with Renee.

Of course, she has no concept of who Santa Claus is, or even what Christmas is at this point in her life.  But, I know she will enjoy looking back at pictures of herself with Santa from every year of her childhood.

So, I got off early today and took Renee to the mall.  She did not like the fact that I was handing her to a large, hairy, stranger.  And no matter what I or the "elves" did, she would not smile.  It didn't help that Santa wouldn't let her get a good look at his face.  He thought it would make her cry, and so every time she tried to turn around to see who was holding her he would duck his face down behind her back.  This resulted in her just sitting there looking sad and confused!  Oh, well, it's still a cute picture.

And without further ado, here is Renee's very 1st picture with Santa Claus, taken at Arden Fair Mall in Sacramento.

After visiting Santa, we went to Sears to pick up our Christmas photo cards.  I would show you what they look like, but I'm pretty sure everyone that reads this blog is on our mailing list, so you'll just have to wait :D

After window shopping and snacking on some mall food (Hot Dog on a Stick), we got in the car and drove back to Davis to get our flu shots.  I fully expected Renee to cry like she does every other time she has gotten shots, but she just sat there in my arms and looked at the lady like, '"hey, why are you touching my leg lady?".
At this point, a few hours later, it feels like someone punched me in the arm where I got my shot, so I'm sure her leg is sore too, but she's a tough little monkey.  Hopefully she doesn't have too bad of a reaction to the vaccine later tonight!!