In past years, children waiting to buy gifts at the Lawrence Arts Center’s Children’s Holiday Shop had to wait with their parents in a line that spilled out the door of the old building and wrapped around the corner and down the block..

The scene will be different this year.

The new arts center at 940 N.H. is ample enough for families to wait inside ” out of the cold ” until it’s their child’s turn to visit the shopping area downstairs.

“The line in the past has been up to an hour long,” said Rene Morris, co-chairwoman of the Children’s Holiday Shop. “I don’t know that the wait will be any shorter, necessarily, but it will be a little more comfortable to wait.”

Helping make the wait more entertaining will be KU’s Baby Jay, performances by a pianist and guitar player, photo opportunities with Santa Claus and homemade cookies provided by the arts center pre-school.

The kids-only holiday shop will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday. More than 5,000 affordable gifts will be available for children to buy for everyone on their holiday gift list. The presents are even wrapped, so kids can keep them a surprise.

Here’s how the shop works: First, children fill out gift lists with their parents. Then, the children are escorted one at a time by volunteer “elves” (mostly KU students) to the basement for holiday shopping. Adults wait on the main floor. Five tables will bear gifts priced from $1 to $5 to fit children’s’ budgets.

Once the children check off all the items on their lists, volunteers wrap and tag the presents.

Wendy Casebier, Topeka, clowns around in front of children outside the old Lawrence Arts Center while they wait in line to buy gifts at the center's Children's Holiday Shop. Casebier had seen a poster hanging in the KU theater department asking for performers to entertain children as they waited in line. This year's shop will be open from 9:30 a.m. to 2 p.m. Saturday at the new arts center, 940 N.H. The extra space in the new building should keep people from having to wait outside.

“The kids get to decide themselves what they’re going to buy. It truly is a personal success for a lot of the kids to make those decisions,” Morris said. “The light on their face, knowing that they got to choose something that they really have put so much thought into. They are thrilled with what they have done, what they have accomplished.”

Most of the gifts have been donated by local businesses.

The arts center is trying to raise at least $3,000 before the shop opens so it can offer free coupons ” called “Santa Dollars” – to children who might not otherwise be able to afford gifts at the shop. The Lawrence school district and other local groups help the arts center pinpoint potential recipients.

The shop serves an average of 700 to 800 children per year.

Anyone interested in donating to the Santa Dollar program can visit the arts center through Saturday or call 843-2787.