Clara and Co.

___________________________

Just one more gumdrop…. and… perfect! 

I stepped back to survey my completed gingerbread house. Ginny bounced up and down at my side. “It’s so pretty!” she squealed.

“Thanks,” I grinned. As I began to clean up the mess I had created, Surjan came bounding in, holding a phone that was blaring Christmas music.

She grabbed some candy from the table while singing loudly along to the song. Mary Lynn came puffing in after her moments later, looking very annoyed.

“Give me back my phone!” She tugged the phone from a giggling Surjan’s hand and stomped out.

Ginny and Surjan chased after her, laughing.

I couldn’t help chuckling at their boundless energy.

As I finished clearing up the kitchen, I heard the doorbell ring and Ivy calling, “I’ll get it!”

A moment later, our little neighbor Mulan stepped shyly into the kitchen. “Hi, Ava. Are Ginny and Surjan here?”

“Yep, they’re probably in their bedroom.” I pointed her towards the right door. “Merry Christmas, Mulan!”

She smiled at me and hurried off to play with her friends.

When I was done the in kitchen, I stepped into the living room, where Ivy and Mary Lynn were in full decorating mode. I picked up a string of tinsel from the floor and began to help them decorate.

Time passed quickly as we sang along to holiday music and arranged the decorations around the room. Before I knew it, my stomach was growling and I realized it was past time for lunch.

Mary Lynn went to the kitchen to make some sandwiches while Ivy and I finished up in the living room. When we were done, I stepped back to survey our work.

Ivy flopped onto the couch with a yawn. “It doesn’t look half bad, huh?”

“We did pretty well,” I agreed. A minute later, Mary Lynn stuck her head in to inform us that the sandwiches were ready. We went eagerly into the kitchen to devour them.

As we ate, we were oblivious to the fact that three small figures had crept into the living room….

Three little girls placed neatly wrapped gifts under the newly decorated tree, giggling softly.

Then they tiptoed quietly away, grinning widely at each other.

When we finished our lunch, I went to get Ginny, Surjan, and Mulan and ask them if they wanted any lunch. I stepped into the living room, then stopped suddenly.

Ivy heard me gasp and hurried in. “What is it, Ava?”

“Look under the tree!” I exclaimed excitedly. “Who put those gifts there?”

“Who cares where they came from? Let’s open them!”

Ivy dashed toward the gifts and was about to rip the paper off the first one when she noticed a small note under the tree.

DO NOT OPEN UNTIL CHRISTMAS. With love from the Christmas Elves.

Ivy pushed the gift back under the tree, looking disappointed. “But Christmas isn’t for another 3 days!”

“I wonder who put them there?” I mused.

Ivy pointed to the note. “The Christmas Elves, obviously!” I shook my head. “No, it’s probably a prank or something…”

Still, I couldn’t help feeling curious as I went to offer the younger girls some lunch. Who did put those gifts under the tree? Mary Lynn had been with us the whole time…

I stuck my head through the bedroom door to find the entire floor covered in Legos and the three girls deep into the process of building a Lego city.

“Do y’all want some sandwiches?”

“Sure!” they chorused. “We’ll be there in a minute,” Ginny told me.

As soon as the door had closed, Mulan began to giggle softly. “She doesn’t suspect a thing!” she whispered with a grin.

“We should be Christmas Elves again tomorrow – that was fun!”

__________________________________

THE END

Hi, everyone! I hope you enjoyed my (rather late) Christmas photostory. 😉 It was quite fun to make! Also, big thanks to my sister for holding a reflector for me. 😀

How are you all doing? What’s your weather like? Ours can’t seem to decide whether it wants to be warm or cold. Oh well – at least Christmas is coming!

Just 3 more days!