Visit with Santa

We waited til the last minute, but on the evening of the 23rd, we finally made a trip to see Santa. This particular Santa is at a landscaping center in Cottage Grove between Thanksgiving and Christmas, and is an authentic, bearded Santa Claus. As "authentic" as he was, Ava's first comment as we left was something to the effect that he "looked different," meaning he wasn't wearing his red hat or coat. We explained to her that it was too warm inside for those, and they were hanging up on a coat rack next to him. She still seemed a little unimpressed with the presentation.
Anyway, the visit was definitely an improvement over last year. She went right onto his lap and even smiled for a minute. When asked what she wanted this year, she was even brave enough to offer a response: "clothes for my baby and a scarf." I know, the scarf is kind of a strange request, and maybe not something she should have to ask for for Christmas, but that is what popped into her head. :)
After a couple of minutes, she was ready to be done, but we did get a few nice pictures (to replace the one from last year with a very sincere frown).
For the record, Ava did get a multitude of outfits for her baby dolls and a lovely purple scarf that she refuses to wear! (Surprise, surprise - for those of you who don't know, Ava is rather...particular about her clothes and does not like anything restrictive or bulky...oh well).