I had just finished reading "The Christmas Sweater" by Glenn Beck, when I got the email newsletter saying he would be doing a book signing right here in our town! So exciting. I'm not one to get star struck, I usually could care less about seeing in person someone I could just as well watch on television. Nonetheless, we thought it would be neat to have our book signed, so off to the mall we went.
Despite the fact that the line wound round and round the mall corridors, and our children were a little less enthusiastic about meeting Glenn Beck than they were about having a chat with Santa, it was worth the wait. I can imagine that meeting people one by one, being herded past like livestock by security and store personnel, it might be difficult for the person of interest to maintain authenticity. But not surprisingly, Glenn handled it like a real pro. He was genuine and warm, for the seconds we were allowed to greet him. He even acknowledged each of the kids individually and shook Noah's hand.
It may seem strange for an 8 year old to be a fan of a talk radio gone cable politics show host (his new show, by the way, will be on Fox News, since he left CNN), but his new book is a great read for anyone, youth and adult alike. Noah has already started reading it and was pretty happy to have a signed copy of the book. So if you haven't already done so, I highly recommend picking up a copy of "The Christmas Sweater"; it's the perfect story for the holidays, and based on a true story, it really brings to life the real meaning of family and gratitude.
Then, we figured since we were already at the mall, we might as well let the kids sit on Santa's lap. ;) It was interesting that when they got on his lap, all of them asked for different things than anything they've been telling us they wanted for the past 12 months. It was as if all of a sudden the pressure of being face to face with the big guy made them lose their senses. And I thought
I was the starstruck one...
Uh, yep, he still believes in Santa.
Some things last from year to year, but the kids' clothes don't seem to last anymore. As you can see from the above picture, uh, it appears that Sammy has outgrown his snow pants from last year!
Last night was the children's elementary school Christmas program. I only got a couple of decent pictures because we were sitting in the far back. At least I can always count on Sophie to give me something clever to write about on the blog. As we gathered the kids together when the program was over, I was telling them what a good job they had done. Sophie chimed in: "Mom, I almost got the staged-fright, because the stage, it was soooo huge and there were too many people watching us!"
On Wednesday evening we made Christmas cookies. The kids had fun decorating, and eating their creations. As Chris finished decorating the ones that were left, I read a book to the kids. I liked watching Chris working on the cookies; he seemed to really be enjoying himself!
It may seem strange for an 8 year old to be a fan of a talk radio gone cable politics show host (his new show, by the way, will be on Fox News, since he left CNN), but his new book is a great read for anyone, youth and adult alike. Noah has already started reading it and was pretty happy to have a signed copy of the book. So if you haven't already done so, I highly recommend picking up a copy of "The Christmas Sweater"; it's the perfect story for the holidays, and based on a true story, it really brings to life the real meaning of family and gratitude.
Then, we figured since we were already at the mall, we might as well let the kids sit on Santa's lap. ;) It was interesting that when they got on his lap, all of them asked for different things than anything they've been telling us they wanted for the past 12 months. It was as if all of a sudden the pressure of being face to face with the big guy made them lose their senses. And I thought I was the starstruck one...
