This weekend, among other things, my family went to see Santa. It was the typical setup where Santa is there in his little make-shift North Pole with a helper or two (in this case Mrs. Clause) and, of course, a photographer on hand to record the moment for posterity.
We all stood in a long line waiting our turn…well, ok, so the parents stood in a long line waiting our turn while the kids played all around us, and filled out a little slip of paper so the photographer would be able to contact us later and tell us just how expensive this free visit with Santa was actually going to be.
But this visit was different, and in a very unexpected way.
While most of the kids sat in Santa's lap and regaled him with extensive lists of what they were most certain he'd bring them Christmas Eve, my oldest daughter smiled shyly and handed him a small, brown, paper bag.
You see, my daughter had made a present for Santa. She made him a present.
She decorated one of the little brown lunch sacks we have around the house to be the gift bag and found some colorful pieces of paper and wadded them up to serve as the tissue paper in the gift bag. In the bag was a picture she'd drawn for Santa as well as some gifts for the elves.
She included some strips of yarn so that the elves could use it when they make dolls for other little girls, and threw in a couple of those little googly eyes from her craft kit that they might find useful when they make puppets.
I'm not sure what else was in the bag because, after all, it was for Santa and not for me, but I am sure of one thing- I could not be more proud of my child.
She has a heart that simply amazes me.
Merry Christmas Abby.
AWWWWWWWW!!!!