The Surprise Revealed!

I have been wanting to get the girls (Cecilia) "Elf on the Shelf" for a couple years now, but they are so gosh darn expensive that I keep putting it off! I have looked online a few times to find a cheaper one with no luck, so my plan was to try to find one after Christmas last year, but with the arrival of Lily that just didn't happen. Then the "movie" came out this year on t.v., so I recorded it for Cecilia. I figured we'd introduce it to her like that this year, and I'd try to get on sale at the end of the season for next year. Well, she REALLY got into the movie and simply loved it. But I was not swaying and sticking with the plan.

Then, earlier this week I was at Hallmark to use a Groupon I had gotten several months ago and was saving it to get the girls their annual Hallmark ornaments from us. So I got their ornaments (put my blinders on from all of the other totally cute Christmas stuff) and went to check out - only to find out the Groupon would not work for the ornaments - grrrrr! They were the only thing it would not work on - of course! I turned around to start shopping again, and there was one lonely "Elf on the Shelf" left screaming my name! So I bought it (and of course the million dollar ornaments - why did I start such an expensive tradition?), and the rest is history!

Cecilia and Daddy going to check and see if we got any packages.
Cecilia LOVES to get our packages!

Lily is excited!

Ripping open the package!

So happy!
She kept saying, "My very own elf!"
The next time we watched the movie I realized that
is exactly what the little girls said when theirs arrived!

She named him "Abel."
I have no idea where that came from!