I am a member of the Everywhere Society, and Everywhere has provided me with some form compensation for this post. However, all thoughts and opinions expressed herein are my own.

Many moons ago, before I became a mom and before I played Santa, I worked at a major department store to finance my Christmas shopping sprees. During the winter breaks from college, I was hired as a fragrance model and convinced customers to buy gift sets for the loved ones on their lists. At first, I was employed at Kaufmann’s. I got that job, because my mom was a counter manager. Let’s just say sales wasn’t hereditary!  Then, I floated floors at Lazarus, but spent most of my time in the lingerie department. Not long after, Macy’s opened its doors in Monroeville Mall. Although the store names changed, one thing stayed the same over the holidays—Old Saint Nick. Year after year, kids from across the city clutched their Christmas wishes and stood in line to see Santa.  

Macys

This Friday, I’ll join that line and celebrate the season with Macy’s. This time, my little girl will anxiously await Santa’s arrival. She talks about him every time we spot a deer in our neighborhood and has been looking forward to this day since, well, last Christmas! She doesn’t know we’re going to celebrate the season this week. She’ll get a bit surprise when we head to Macy’s Downtown Pittsburgh location. We’ll start off by watching the iconic Holiday Window Unveiling. Then, the fun will kick off on the Smithfield Street stage with a fire eating and LED hula performance by Fire and Flow. The evening hosts, YouTube sensations Rose and Rosie, will light up the night with show stopping performances by Taste of Country Critic’s pick Jamie Lynn Spears and Macy’s iHeartRadio Rising Star contest winners Before You Exit. Completing the all-star line-up is Pittsburgh’s own defensive end, Cam Heyward, along with the Make-A-Wish Foundation and the man of the hour, Santa Claus!

To warm up after the show, Caitlynn and I will sip hot chocolate and participate in FROZEN themed activities, like Olaf snowman building, basket weaving and face painting. I’ll be sure to bring my camera to snap a shot with the stars of The Nutcracker. Maybe that will be our next tradition–attending a show. One lucky winner will take home a set of tickets. We hope to see you there!

Hey DFTM Fam–What’s on your Christmas wish list? How are you celebrating the season this month?

About The Author

Vlog Mom/DFTM Creator

Not long ago, Heather Hopson hosted a television show in the Cayman Islands. Today, she's back home writing a different kind of story as a new mom. In her 15 years working as a professional journalist, this by far is her best assignment! Growing up, she dreamed of becoming Oprah Winfrey. She was the features editor for her school’s newspaper and a teen talk show host for her city’s most popular radio station. She went on to earn a bachelor’s degree in Journalism from Michigan State University. After graduation, she worked as a television producer and reporter at CBS, NBC and Fox affiliates throughout the U.S. Instead of heading to Chicago to join Ms. Winfrey on her set, she bought a plane ticket to the Cayman Islands instead. She arrived five days before a category five hurricane! She lived in paradise for seven years, hosted an award-winning television show and traveled the globe with a government delegation. She also served on the board of directors for Big Brothers Big Sisters and spearheaded a Send a Kid to Camp campaign. Then, she relocated to Washington, D.C. to obtain a teaching certification and instruct 8th grade reading at a high needs middle school. She later returned to her hometown of Pittsburgh, PA to raise her daughter Caitlynn, now 4-years-old. During her 10-month-stint as a stay-at-home mom, Caitlynn inspired her to create this blog, and Diary of a First Time Mom was born on Mother’s Day 2012. Two years later, she expanded the family to include 20+ writers. Currently, Heather serves as the communications director at Allies for Children. In addition, she is the owner of Motor Mouth Multimedia, which ranked #49 in Startup Nation’s Home-Based 100 Competition sponsored by Discover Card and Sam’s Club. Recently, The Pittsburgh Foundation and The Heinz Endowments selected Heather to receive an Emerging Black Artist award to develop Diary of a First Time Mom.

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