Beca's magical season

Besides the typical 4 year old doesn't understand the whole spirit of the season (it's about giving gifts, not getting them), Beca has been so much fun to watch with lights and decorations for Christmas so far.  She needed to be intricately involved with every aspect of helping with lights on the tree and putting ornaments up and setting up her own little tree in the bonus room and checking on Daddy's professional light job out front (those blasted LED's are bright!).  And today we got our first Christmas card from my aunt and uncle (Beca's godparents) and my youngest cousins, Andrew and Rachel, who Beca's just calls her cousins because its easier and they are much closer in age.  I read her the outside of the card "It's for the Cottle Family" and she said "ooh, that's us!" and then I showed her the card.  "That's my Aunt Dee and Uncle Troy and my cousins Andrew and Rachel and oh, look at their cute little puppy.  Awwww." The rest of dinner and after, she kept saying "I got an invitation from my cousins Andrew and Rachel.  They are my cousins.  Did we get any more invitations for Christmas for the Cottle family?"  Isn't that sweet???

On the other side of her magical season is our Elf, Smith.  Smith sits on the shelf and then he reports back to Santa Claus each night on whether the kids in the house were good or bad.  Smith was named after a joke in Mary Poppins (if you don't remember it, watch the movie again - it's good for the soul to sing along).  So we have to remind Beca that we can talk to Smith and we can tell him good or bad things.  Some of the tantrums are shortening significantly with Smith around.  I'm going to miss him when Santa takes him home to the North Pole.