Zippo - The Happy Flying Elf and Christmas, too

"McKenzie, wake up! Let's go find Zippo!"

This is the sentence I've been waking up to almost every morning for the past month or so.

Meet Zippo. Our happy flying elf.

All through December, Zippo has been an important part of our family. He sits up in high places, silently taking notes of the childrens' behavior. Each night, he flies all the way to the North Pole to report to the big man himself about what he saw in the Alder household. When he returns, just before the children awake, he sits in a new place and waits for the new day.

When the kids wake up, they storm through each room in search of their new friend and, once he's found, they laugh and point, jump up and down and shout, "Good morning, Zippo!" Zippo smiles back.

I don't find it a coincidence that my kids have been exceptionally well-behaved this month. After sharing a toy or completing a chore without whining, I frequently hear, "I bet Zippo was watching!" I've been a little affected by this happy elf as well. Often, when I start reaching my temper-threshold, I see that little red hat and those bright blue eyes flash into my mind...Zippo has kind of become a symbol of a real belief I have: I am being watched and silently encouraged to make good choices!

Zippo flew back to the North Pole on Christmas Eve after everyone was asleep, and didn't return on Christmas day. We suspect he's going to take a long nap and then start making the toys for next year. We're sure he'll come back to us at the beginning of December next year to help us all remember to be on our best behavior always, even when surrounded by the comfort of our own walls, and especially to those we love the most.

Zippo's reports must have been alright, because Santa came and brought the kids some great treasures. (Yes, a mop included...)
Lest you think Santa spoiled the children...these are not all from Santa. Grandparents, Aunts and Uncles spoiled the children. (Thank you!) :)

And now, for my Top Ten favorite things about Christmas this year:



#10 - Eating great food













Yes, it is a beautiful pie...but I didn't make it. In fact, I've never even attempted a pie like this. I leave that to my favorite pie-maker, Katie. :)



#9 - Making homemade popcorn and eating it out of our new popcorn buckets



#8 - Having sugar cereal on Christmas morning








Here I am, slaving away in the kitchen to prepare what we really all want for Christmas breakfast!



#7 - Having just the right amount of wrapping paper
This is seriously all we had left on Christmas Eve. After we cleaned up, we found one last present that needed to be wrapped, and Brian had to go rummaging around in the garbage can OUTSIDE to find all the scraps! I should have gotten a picture of that present after it was wrapped...it looked kind of homeless with all the different pieces taped together...



#6 - Opening presents











#5 - Watching the Nativity put on by kids



#4 - Quality time with the kids











#3 - Spending time with great friends

(I know, I know, I need to be better at taking group pictures with our friends!!!)



#2 - Staring at this handsome guy for a whole week



















#1 - Kid Cameras!!!
It has been SO FUN to watch these kids get into my obsession. :) This picture above captures my favorite moment of the Christmas season this year. (Don't worry, I'll get to telling you what the picture is...) On Christmas day, we decided to watch one of our new Disney movies (thanks to my brother Brian). We popped popcorn, brought the beanbags upstairs, turned the lights out and cuddled together with soft blankets as the kids watched Beauty and the Beast for the first time (sad, I know). Towards the end of the movie, the kids were shocked into silence when they thought the beast had been killed. They didn't move a muscle as Belle came and cried into the Beast's fur. Then, when the beast started rising from the ground, encircled by rags of clothing and magical sparks, Carson jumped up from his beanbag and shouted, "Oh! ... Oh!" He put his hands up in the air and ran out of the room as fast as he could. Puzzled, I asked after him, "Carson, where are you going?" And, from the other room, his little voice replied, "I have to get mine camwuh!" He came running back into the room holding his little camera and started snapping pictures of the television. (Yes, the photo is upside down...he won't believe us that he's holding the camera upside down, so we just let him be.) McKenzie joined in the fun seconds later, and Brian and I tried to muffle our laughs as flash after flash exploded from their cameras to capture this moment in time as the Beast turned into a prince.

I hope your Christmas was wonderful, too!