Santa at HEB

A couple days before Christmas my Mom and I took the kids to the grocery store to get everything we needed for Christmas dinner, and guess who we saw there!?! Yep, Santa was in town, buying his groceries! Who knew he shopped at the HEB in Bryan, Texas? We ran into him near the bakery. He didn't have his red suit on; he wore jeans and a long sleeved shirt, and he wore his Santa suspenders and his red hat. There is no doubt about it though - that was definitely Santa. He had a bushy white beard, white hair, a round belly, and a twinkle in his eye that left no doubt that this was the real Santa.


So, just as we were passing by the bakery, we stopped and pointed him out to the kids. Elaina stopped dead in her tracks and looked at him. She wasn't sure what to make of Santa shopping at HEB without his read suit on. I can only imagine the millions of questions running through her mind. She just kept staring at him. Erin wasn't too surprised about Santa walking through her grocery store, but she doesn't yet understand how far Texas is from the North Pole! This was a big deal! Elaina was in awe; Erin was just thrilled.

Santa acted perfectly (of course!). As Elaina just stood in awe, staring at Santa Claus, he stared right back at her. And then he winked at her. He twitched his nose. They both stared at each other for several seconds, neither one saying a word. Then in a quiet voice, she asked: "are you Santa?" He twitched his nose and winked at her.

He asked her to leave out 9 carrots - the small ones - on Christmas Eve. And he asked for cookies - 2 cookies - for himself. And a glass of milk. Elaina made sure to tell Santa that she was on the "nice list." He asked about Erin, and Elaina assured him that Erin was on the nice list too. Erin concurred.

This was one of the greatest Christmas moments and I will always remember it. I hope the kids always remember running into Santa and visiting with him in the bakery section of the local grocery store.