Visit to Santa

[Pickle]

My kids and I have been on an "adventure" (anything out of the bounds of SE22 constitutes an adventure for me these days!) to Bromley and seen Santa this morning. Well worth a visit for a relatively stress free experience, we got there before 10am, no queue, lovely Santa - presents for the kids plus the obligatory photo for ?11 (and the kids got books which they love, so better than the usual tat).

And as always the Glades was a great child friendly experience. Even managed to convince both kids to sit still for 10 minutes while I had a coffee and my first Xmas mince pie of the season :)

Recommended (just try to stay away from Pumpkin Patch, as true to form I went in there for a look and walked out having spent FAR too much money!). The Christmas display around Santa's grotto is lovely for the kids to look at too.

[sanity girl]

I would take her, but my daughter is terrorised by men dressed as santa/ lifesize santa models! Any suggestions on what I can do to alleviate her fear, given that she is bound to see many of them as the season is upon us? I am particularly apprehensive about her nursery school play/ part next week when one of the dads will be dressed as santa and distributing presents - I predict inconsolable tears!

[Pickle]

My brother was exactly the same as a child - every year we had a photo with Santa at the local shopping centre, and in every one he's crying!

Have you got any books with Santa in them? Start with that, try to really build up the whole "Santa brings you lovely presents" side of it, get Santa to "talk" to her using the lovely website someone posted yesterday, and maybe she'll gradually come round to the idea that he's not scary?

Good luck.

P x

[sanity girl]

Hi Pickle

thanks for the tips. She loves Raymond Brigg's book Father Christmas Goes on Holiday, so I don't think it's the figure himself who terrifies her, more the concept of a real moving life-sized one! I will try that website and see how she responds.

Mx

[sanity girl]

oh dear, Santa website was not a success -she asked me to turn it off, tears imminent, before he could get a chance to give his message. Now she is saying she just wants to get a presents from a real man, not father christmas, and not somebody wearing a father christmas costume!!

[ludoscotts]

oh no thats horrible, bless her, was going to suggest taking the kids up to winter wonderland in hyde park to see santa but not sure if it would work. We took our little one and it was fab, its like thorpe park meets christmas. It was lovely(although we went on a wed, imagine a weekend would be a nightmare) but there is a christmas market with the little chalets selling gifts and mulled wine and chritmas pastries then there is rides which is roughly 2 tokens(?1 per token) then right at the back there is santa land which has a little train going around it and kiddie rides and stalls but there was santa there too a really nice one, free to go and see him(its allfree to walk around only pay for rides)you dont get a present from him only a little bag of choc footballs but Id prefer that than spending money to see him and get a tatty present. You can then pay for a pic if you want it which is ?8. We thought it was a lovely afternoon out, christmas smells and songs playing all the way around, really got us in the mood. Was wondering if theis kind of setting would help sanity girl's little one as there is pics of santa all over but in an exciting setting etc. also you dont go into a scary grotto he is sat in a house with a totally open front so you can see him from quite far away so your little one could view what was happening from afar.