Ho ho no

Usually a man dressing up and getting children to sit on his lap in exchange for candy would lead to a swift conviction and a lengthy stretch inside.  But at this time of year the practice is positively encouraged, and fake Santas pop up in malls all around this great country (while the real one remains busy at the North Pole).

None of this was fooling Claire.  Despite the very best efforts to get her excited ("what does Santa say?", "who are we going to see?"), when she was standing in Santa's Workshop there was nothing that was going to get her anywhere near the strange guy with a beard dressed in red.  Vince did his best and I think managed to pull his arm free for one quick photo by the official photographer, but his daughter was only happy again once she was far away and nibbling her complimentary candy cane.  Clever girl.

Even Santa has been forced to downsize this year.

Remember all that stuff we taught you about strangers?  Just forget it for now.

Nope, not going to happen.  To be fair to Santa, he was the consummate professional. I guess this kind of thing happens to him several hundred times a day.

Slightly happier now.

What Santa really wants, according to the Apple Store.