a special delivery

Imagine Dennis' surprise and delight when he opened his backpack after school and found a delivery from Santa. Santa sent Neely the Elf to be Dennis' friend and companion from now til Christmas Eve, when he'll return to the North Pole. We read the special letter and instructions that Santa sent along with Neely. Dennis has them memorized already. He is to be put on the kitchen counter at night with crackers and ice water (crackers are crunchy like North Pole ice, ice water reminds him of melting ice back home), and we've been warned that he might get into some mischief now and again, especially after we sprinkle him with North Pole Magic Snowflakes at night (Santa sent a jar of these along with him). Dennis instantly fell in love with his elf friend. He told everyone about it, took him everywhere that he went today, and was almost too excited to sleep for wondering what Neely would be up to during the night. Just before bed, Dennis came in to the bathroom and handed me a set of elf clothes, telling me that Neely had played hard today and needed his laundry done so he'd have clean clothes for tomorrow. He dressed the elf in a robe that Gran gave him, a robe that a teddy bear had worn. Neely is reclining comfortably on the kitchen counter in his crimson and gold robe, or at least he was when we went to bed...

Neely is an Elf-Magic elf, not an Elf on the Shelf (because the latter kind aren't allowed to be touched or played with and they spy on kids to report to Santa), and Dennis has already remarked that he's sad that he will go home with Santa on Christmas Eve. That was a fast attachment that he formed!

Tonight, Dennis and David joined Gran, Pop, and Gigi at the town Christmas tree lighting ceremony, and then had dinner at Gran's. I joined them there after my shift at the gym. I'm falling more and more in love with small town life, and I can't wait til the parade tomorrow night. Nineteen years ago, David and I had our first date at the Clanton Christmas parade! We love sharing it with Dennis!