Unexpected Surprises

We have an unexpected guest staying with us this Christmas season. His name is Nicholas and he's from the North Pole :)

My son, Carson, came home from school last week all excited and eager to share with me about something that was taking place in his classroom. Several of his classroom buddies had received elves from the North Pole. Carson referred to it has having an "Elf on the Shelf". I hadn't heard anything about these elves. Then again, I haven't watched the news lately.

Carson really wanted an elf and said we needed to place saltine crackers, a small glass of water, and one of his shoes by the fireplace for the elf to arrive. That evening Carson carefully arranged everything near the fireplace but in the morning there was no elf to be found.

He was so disappointed and with tears in his eyes said "I'll be the only kid in my class that doesn't have an elf this year". He suggested that maybe he did something wrong and that's why the elf didn't arrive. I assured him that the elf most likely got detained by some big important assignment at the North Pole and not to get discouraged.

The following evening we placed out the crackers, water, one of Carson's smelling tennis shoes and sure enough, the elf appeared overnight! Carson was so excited he could hardly stand it. He quickly began writing a letter to the elf that was filled with lots of questions. He wanted to know all about his new friend, especially what his name was.

Well, since last week we've found out quite a bit about this little guy. First off, his name is Nicholas. He is nocturnal and gets into a lot of mischief at night when we're sleeping. He loves saltine crackers and water but leaves crumbs all over the place. He likes to dig in sock drawers, toy bins, and the kitchen pantry. During the day, he carefully watches what goes on in our house, making sure that Carson is being a good boy and obeying his parents.

Carson just loves his new friend Nicholas and is so proud of him. Just this weekend, Carson invited several of his neighborhood friends over the meet Nicholas. In fact, Carson wanted you to meet Nicholas too and asked me to please do a blog post this morning. I told him I would as long as I was able to post a picture of him and Nicholas together. He gladly agreed.

Here they are. I kinda think they look a lot a like too!

Merry Christmas,
Leah