He's Really Real!

Shortly after Thanksgiving someone new moved into our house. He's about 13 inches tall with brown hair and blue eyes, enjoys holiday music, sports a fashionable red jumpsuit, and is friends with Santa. His name (after much deliberation and a Presidential veto on the moniker "Buns") is Murphy and he is an elf. An Elf on the Shelf to be exact.

While you could click on the link to get more information on this new holiday tradition that has taken the world by storm, I'll give you a quick synopsis. You "adopt" one of Santa's elf's, and he comes to live at your house. He watches you throughout the day to see whether you're being naughty or nice, then travels to the North Pole to update Santa, returning every morning in a new spot in your house. It's your job to 1.) give him a name, 2.) find him every morning, and 3.) NEVER ever touch him. The book is really rather cute...I strongly recommend it for all families with children...or just people who are young at heart.

We read Murphy's story a couple of nights in a row before he developed the courage to leave his shelf. In the morning it didn't take Libby any time at all to notice that he was missing from his usual spot. It took even less time for her to find him...sitting on our big clock!

She came running in to the bathroom yelling "Mama, mama...Murphy really is real! He's really real! Murphy is sitting on your clock!" (Except she still has lots of toddler speak so the l is missing when she says clock and it comes out sounding R-rated...you can chuckle; Lord knows I still do every.dang.time.)

Needless to say, that little girl was sold hook, line, and sinker as to the legitimacy of our very own elf. Every morning she wakes up intent on finding his new hiding spot.

On morning he was sitting on top of the gingerbread Advent calendar. He even showed up at Grammy and Poppy's over the weekend to keep an eye on her behavior. Word has it he was caught making snow angels in the snow that has (finally) fallen and hanging from the mistletoe. This morning he is peeking in on us from the middle of a potted plant. (No joke, it's as much fun to hide that little elf as it is to watch her look for him and talk to him.)

The kicker so far was finding him atop our newly decorated Christmas tree. It sat bare for a whole weekend before Murphy came to the rescue. It didn't take much to convince Libby that I had no hand in the decorating of the Christmas tree and that Murphy was completely responsible. She was so proud of him!

I am so very glad we have a new holiday tradition to make our holidays that much brighter. I can't wait to see what mischief Murphy manages to get into as Christmas draws near. Lords knows I've found tons of ideas to keep Murphy (and myself) occupied...and Libby giggling.

love always, Kendra