I knew it was inevitable. My son just turned eight and I knew he would start to piece things together this holiday season. Between friends at school, older cousins, and holiday movies (hello,
The Santa Clause), it was only a matter of time before he asked the inevitable question:
Is Santa real?
Andy is our only child, and I wanted to treasure the magic of Christmas for as long as possible. So I was super excited to find
The Storybook Santa Experience by Ivey Photography. This Dallas-Fort Worth Santa Experience was like nothing we’d seen before.
It was such a cool experience, that I asked if I could share some of the images on our site. I wasn’t compensated for this post — I just thought it was too fun to keep to myself!
The Storybook Santa Experience has three locations in Dallas-Fort Worth: Keller, Richardson, and Midlothian. As with most photographers, you pay a sitting fee for the session, then order prints once your session is through.
But the magic really happens on the night of your experience.
We arrived a bit early and sat in the waiting room until our turn. Andy was dressed in some classic holiday pajamas and he was super excited, but also a little nervous. We had talked about how he would get to meet Santa and ask any questions he had and do some fun things with the Big Guy.
When it was time to get started, Andy was ready. We walked into the workshop, and it was magical.
Santa sat in an armchair, reading a book. There was a stool for Andy to sit beside him. He saw Andy and welcomed him in, asking how he was doing in school and if he kept up with his chores.
Mama liked this line of questioning.
Santa asked Andy if he thought he could clean his room two times before Christmas, and also ask me if there were any chores he could help me with.
They talked about what he wanted for Christmas — Andy asked for a puppy. Our dog recently passed away, and I knew this was coming. Our family isn’t quite ready for another dog, so I was relieved when
Santa explained his rules for live animals: Those presents have to be approved by Mom and Dad because they know when your family (or you!) are ready for the responsibility of them.
Whew.
Santa pulled out his globe and explained how he’d find our house on Christmas Eve. Soon, it was time to move into the workshop.
In the workshop, they painted a toy, talked about magic, and Santa even brought out some snow from the North Pole.
Some other things they did together included decorating a Christmas tree, taking a look in Santa’s magic bag, and reading
‘Twas the Night Before Christmas.
Next, they moved into the kitchen to bake some cookies with Mrs. Clause. Once they cut out a few cookies, they put them away and tried some that Mrs. Clause had already baked so we didn’t have to wait long.
In all, Andy spent about 60 minutes with Santa, moving from one activity to another and enjoying every second. When we were done, he couldn’t stop talking about it.
As you can see, Ivey Photography has a special style to their images — they treat them to look like a fine art painting and add a little magic to the scene as well. I can’t wait to display these gorgeous memories for years to come.
The
Storybook Santa Experience really is the best way to help your kid believe in Santa. It’s such a magical experience.
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