Snickerdoodles and Santa

Christmas season isn't complete unless there is some baking, right? Among the cookies we made recently were snickerdoodles. Amelia is already a champion measurer, sifter and mixer thanks to Waffle Sundays. Well, it turns out that she is also really, really good at rolling balled up dough in the cinnamon sugar mix and placing them on the cookie sheet. Seriously, I needed to touch up none of the cookies (but I did re-space a few on the cookie sheet).

One of the Christmas themed commercials this year features the Jackson 5 singing "I'll Be There". Amelia stops whatever she is doing and exclaims, "That's my favorite song!" whenever she hears it.

She also loves "Jingle Bell Rock" and "Rocking Around the Christmas Tree". But her hands-down favorite is Winter Wonderland. Every time it comes on the radio she squeals, "It MY song, Mommy!"

She doesn't quite understand the concept of the radio. I am sure it's due to my inadequate explanation(s). If we stop to run an errand, she wants the radio to pick back up wherever we left off. "Please put it back on "Jingle Bell Rock" Mommy." Um, it's the radio. "No, Mommy, it's a CD. Please put it back on "Jingle Bell Rock." It's number 2o on the CD, Mommy."

We stopped at Wal-mart the other day and the Salvation Army bell ringer was dressed as Santa Claus. Amelia was beside herself in the dumb-struck, mouth open, it-can't-really-be-him-can-it? way. It was really pretty cute. She was too shy and starstruck to say anything much on the way in. On the way out, however, she bravely went up to him and touched his hand, looking up at him with the biggest grin, and then came running to me and said, "Mommy, I holded Santa's hand!!!"

Keep in mind, I haven't said a word about Santa to her. Whatever she knows about Santa she has gained from other sources (preschool, Nana?, others?) and it has inspired some sort of awe in her that she would see him in person.

[picture dated 12/16/09]