“You’ve done something!” joked the Grinch who adhered to the naughty or nice mindset at the Santa comes to Parkway Plaza event held on Nov. 17 in El Cajon. Thankfully, Santa was more accepting of little ones’ transgressions than the Grinch was. Never the less the Grinch continued entertaining parents and kids with lines like, “You guys like canned beets?”
“You’ve done something!” joked the Grinch who adhered to the naughty or nice mindset at the Santa comes to Parkway Plaza event held on Nov. 17 in El Cajon. Thankfully, Santa was more accepting of little ones’ transgressions than the Grinch was. Never the less the Grinch continued entertaining parents and kids with lines like, “You guys like canned beets?”
The Grinch, Santa, a children’s choir from El Cajon’s Literacy First Charter Schools, and a Santa’s throne with accompanying holiday decorations all added up to the kickoff of the holiday season sponsored by Health Net. The event centered on the Santa display where children and adults can get their pictures taken with Santa. Picture package options were for digital, print, or both.
“We moved to the food court; this is our first year here,” said Ken Gray, marketing director for Parkway Plaza. “Every kid gets an 8” cookies for Santa plate.”
“There is a Santa’s Fastpass” Gray continued. Similar to Disneyland’s fast pass it helps visitors avoid the long lines and wait times. Visit the Parkway Plaza website to sign up for the pass. There is a small service charge.
“I want a ticket to Disneyland,” said 7-year-old Santee resident, Ava Warriner, who was there to visit Santa and sing in the Literacy First Charter Schools’ children’s choir. Some children answered the annual question of “What do you want for Christmas?” with Legos, Shopkins, a dog, and that they did not know yet.
Dana Warriner, Ava’s mother and a teacher at LFCS, noted the choir, led by music teacher Mirta Flores, performed holiday songs like “I want a hippopotamus for Christmas” to the classics such as “Jingle Bells.” Warriner noted the children’s choir would perform on KUSI on Dec. 1.
Visit the Parkway Plaza website for complete details. The main hours starting November 17th and on, are from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday-Saturday with shorter hours on Sunday. The hours will change to 10 a.m. – 9 p.m., M-Sat., the last week before Christmas. Check its website at www.shoppingparkwayplaza.com/events for exact days they will operate, break and lunch times, and signing up for Santa’s Fastpass. Pictures with Santa will not be available on Thanksgiving. On Christmas Eve they close at 5 p.m.
