Sack Races, Parties, and a "Boyfriend" - Day 12 & 11

For those still confused by the order in which I write my numbers... yes, we are still counting backwards.

Day 12's "elf discovery" as actually thwarted the night before by our daughter, who had trouble falling asleep at bedtime. Thanks to a two hour nap that day (due to the nasty chest cold that has kept her home most of the week), she struggled to fall asleep at bedtime and ended up coming out to find Elfia already hard a play. (Note: we are pretty sure she knows it's us who, err... shall I say "pulls the strings" ... of her beloved elf, but she's enjoying the fun too much to really care.) So while we were disappointed not to have had the usual merriment the next morning, we were thrilled at her reaction none-the-less. Elfia, as you can see, was embroiled in a ruthless "sack race" with some resident stuffies of our home. She looks quite happy with herself to have won huh?

Day 12's letter from Santa reminded us that it was party day! Weeks of planning meant mommy and daddy had certainly NOT forgotten that fact, and we certainly weren't going to let a no-longer contagious but still coughing child keep us from having our fun. So, after ensuring that she had a good nap again on Friday, she was eager to help us get ready to celebrate the season with our friends. Work friends, church friends, etc... it was a good night to mix n' mingle!

Day 11th's elf discovery thankfully came several hours later than the usual 6:30 a.m. wake up thanks to the "party hangover" that had us all sleeping late this a.m. It also revealed that the party had been fun for Elfia too! We weren't the only ones who had enjoyed some fellowship with new and old friends... it turns out a visiting elf (a gift from one of our party attendees) had hit if off well with Elfia. They were found still livin' it up in the dining room, attempting to stack our leftover mandarin oranges! ;-)

Today's letter from Santa came with a gift: a gingerbread train! After a crazy week and a busy night, we look forward to settling in tonight to put our train together. Pics to follow. For now, we leave you with our little family, all decked out in our Christmas costumes from our "photo booth" experience at last night's party!