Hey, Santa!

For the first time ever we had a cooperative kid that wanted to take pictures with Santa. Little man is not so little anymore and this year his interested in jolly old St. Nick is at an all time high. 

Questions I've been asked:

How does Santa fit down the chimney?

Is his belly so big because all he eats is cookies and milk?

Why is he married?

How tall are Santa's elves? Are they taller than me?

Is he watching me right now? 

Where is Santa's house? Can we get there on the freeway?

Parker is quite the curious and chatty little monkey.

It was important for us to find a good Santa that would answer all his questions so we decided to have photos taken with Santa at Seaport Village. We arrived early but there was already a line so Parker and I visited the candy shop and walked along the water looking for crabs while Tuan waited in line for about 30 minutes. Our visit with Santa was pleasant and Eileen was able to capture some good photos of our family. However, I have to note that only 3 of the 7 photos we were given were actually in focus which was very disappointing. For $50, I expect all the photos to be in focus but what is Christmas without some hiccups.

I'm been an absolute trash blogger lately and I apologize. I wish everyone a happy holiday and even happier new year!

2015 Santa Picture with Mall Santa

Here it is, Folks! Our 2015 Santa picture. I'm proud to report that there was no crying this year but there weren't any smiles either. This is the best photo we took, Parker looked terrified in all the rest. We opted to visit the Santa at Westfield UTC this year and I think it's safe to say that we will be going back to the Seaport Village Santa next year. 

Mom tips:

1. Pictures with mall Santa were more expensive (the basic package + digital copy was close to $50) and you only get a digital copy of 1 photo. With Seaport Santa you get all the photos from your session on a disc. 

2. We paid for the SantaFastPass and the workers weren't paying attention to whether or not people were in the fast pass line so we still had to wait. 

3. Mall Santa was too chatty. Clearly my child is afraid of you. Please stop asking for high fives.

4. The picture quality and photo background were not as good as Seaport Santa. 

Do you know of other good Santa photo opps in San Diego? Please leave a comment below.

I've pretty much been the worst blogger of all time the last few months. This is a fact. If you want more frequent updates, follow me on Instagram @parkerproject! 

Christmas: 2014 Pictures with Santa

Tuan and I knew going into it that photos with Santa was not going to be a good experience. A few days before, I showed him fun Santa videos and pictures in hopes that he would fall in love with Santa and not scream during his photo shoot. It didn't work. Are we terrible parents for continuing this tradition even though we know Parker is going to get scared and cry? I hope we can all look back at these photos one day and laugh.

[2013 photo with Santa R. Only two little teeth!]

[2014 photo with Santa R. More teeth. Total meltdown.]

[Happy Holidays from the Nguyens!]