Waiting to meet Santa Claus can be a long and tiring experience for little kids. So when baby Ezekiel fell asleep in the line to get a Christmas picture with Kris Kringle at an Indiana mall, Santa told his parents not to wake him. Instead, Saint Nick posed for a unique photoshoot with the napping infant by propping the baby on his chest and pretending to doze off with him.
Ezekiel’s father, Donnie Walters, posted the shoot on the Facebook page for Donnie’s Daddy Daycare. “I can’t believe how adorable our son’s pictures with Santa came out,” he captioned the photos. “After falling asleep in line waiting, Santa asked us not to wake him and the outcome was the cutest thing I’ve ever seen.”
The photos have since gone viral, receiving over 377,000 likes and being shared over 199,000 times to date.
Christmas Wishes: Photos of Kids on the Phone With Santa, 1947
Calling Santa, 1947Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCalling Santa, 1947.Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesPatricia Guinan promises to leave out milk and crackers for Santa Claus on Christmas Eve, 1947.Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCaption from LIFE. Bann Kernan, who is 7 years old, squirms with delight as she asks Santa for a wrist watch." Moments later she gave the phone to her younger brother, Bennie, 5, who requested a train.Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesJo Ann Ward "began with aplomb by saying, 'Hello, Santa Claus. How you feel?'" The three-year-old wanted a doll and a boat.Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesAfter "making sure he could not hear and be disillusioned," Bann Kernan "whispered confidingly to the LIFE researcher" that there is "no Santa Claus," while brother Bennie remained blissfully unaware.Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCaption from LIFE. Elaine Jung is 6, wants a doll's house and carriage, also asked Santa to be sure not to forget her baby sister.Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesJimmy O'Brien, 4, asked for a bike and a sailboat. "When Santa asked where he lived," LIFE reported, "he said, 'You know where.'"Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesChristopher Lange, the son of Poland's U.N. delegate Oscar Lange, "is nearly 8 years old," LIFE wrote, "and a firm believer in Santa Claus." He "showed his official background by requesting the badge of the profession, a briefcase, for Christmas." (He also asked for a paint set.)Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCalling Santa, 1947.Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images"Santa and Mrs. Claus," LIFE wrote, "who sometimes wear red coats to keep in character, answer calls at the F.A.O. Schwarz workshop." Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images"Schwarz's President, Philip Kirkham," LIFE noted, "used to play Santa for the benefit of special customers' children by shouting good cheer up a dumbwaiter shaft." The first time he did it, employees thought he was "a little daft."Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCalling Santa, 1947.MARTHA HOLMESBann Kernan, 7, calls Santa, 1947.Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCalling Santa, 1947.Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty ImagesCalling Santa, 1947.Martha Holmes—The LIFE Picture Collection/Getty Images
