Breakfast With Santa

Barely functioning after our late night TGG Christmas party the night before, we all tried to rub the sleep out of our aching eyeballs, and headed over to the church early for our scheduled pancake breakfast with Santa Claus. It was a close call at the breakfast table. Ken had asked one of Grace's friends what he wanted from Santa this year, which quickly prompted a "Santa isn't real!". Luckily, the child is soft spoken, and Ken and I both found ourselves overpowering his response with an instinctive "Hey....ho...ho....". I don't think Jack or Grace caught the revelation.

The highlight of the church's Breakfast with Santa event is twofold: Santa, and the decoration of a gingerbread house with every type of candy imaginable. This can turn into a serious competition alongside a serious sugar rush. Last year our family won "Most Kid Friendly" (most crazy, and least parent assisted). This year, things were more controlled around the gingerbread decorating:

Here is the final presentation of the children's gingerbread house. Grace and Jack are sandwiching their next door neighbor friend, Phoebe.
Ken and I both agree that Grace isn't ready to extinguish the idea of Santa Claus. She hung on his every word during his visit, and was never far from his side. Later in the morning, when his celebrity status had faded a bit, Grace was able to bring Santa over to her table to view her newly completed gingerbread house. She made sure to tattle on Daddy, letting Santa know that last year, Daddy had eaten off her gingerbread house.