| By Elf Magic | New Year's Edition! |
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Hello my little ones so dear. It is your friend Santa wishing you a cheerful Happy New Year! How lucky we are to have each other as friends and family at the turn of another year, as well as partners in this Timeless Christmas Tradition. Thank you for joining us on this adventure we call Elf Magic, opening your homes to my Elves once again for a season full of love, whimsy and togetherness—by the stories I heard when the Elves joined me to deliver toys on Christmas Eve, it was truly one of their best Christmas "vacations" yet!
And we have proof of just that, of course, through Mrs. Claus' Photo Contest, which saw more than 1170 submissions in its first year running! Those of you who participated have touched all of us at the North Pole deeply, giving us a great opportunity to share in the memories that were made between your family and my Elves. Elf Vanessa, our Arts Critic, has a round-up of the Contest below, including an announcement of the winners in each category. Once more, thanks so much for your participation— the true spirit of Elf Magic was everywhere in abundance!
Among all the excitement of the Photo Contest, it can be easy to forget that most of my Elves and Reindeer have been back at the North Pole for a few weeks now, each working in his or her role as a toy maker, fashion designer, sleigh mechanic or Reindeer trainer. As you know, they all played very hard during the holidays, and are so excited to be back, hard at work! But, in no way does that mean they're not having fun. Indeed, the past two weekends have been filled with the annual Reindeer Games and "Snow Ball and Dinner Dance!" Elf Malone has all the details on the riveting Games below, while Elf Sherry has contributed spectacular coverage on the Dance, as usual.
This New Year’s Edition isn't just about looking back, however! Hardly! Elf Willow, our Fashion Editor, has been snooping around the design shop of Forever Elf Fashions and my goodness has she witnessed some new and exciting developments. Elf Charlotte, the lead designer, has confirmed that there will be a "full line of new Elfits in 2011... to be revealed in a special VIP fashion show for style reporters only." What that means is that Elf Willow will get to experience the new designs first-hand and will report on them almost as soon as they're available! Elf Charlotte and her team are still experimenting, she tells Elf Willow, but is proud to say that the 2011 line will mark Forever Elf's "most creative year yet." Mrs. Claus, for one, is beside herself with excitement!
The Elves at St. Nick's News work hard to deliver the latest-and-greatest reports from the North Pole, so we hope you'll read the whole edition—there's no better way to stay up-to-date on all the magical happenings!
As always, we are "Thankful" for your time and for sharing the Elf Magic Tradition with us each year - it is such a blessing to us. Until next time, please remember to continue sharing your Elves' adventures on Facebook, Twitter and YouTube, and if you know a friend or family member who would love Elf Magic, please forward this SNN! (If you don't want to receive future editions of SNN, simply click the 'SafeUnsubscribe' link at the bottom).
I hope you find the magic of Christmas in your everyday!
Winners Announced in Mrs. Claus' 1st Annual Photo Contest
As Mrs. Claus reported in a special North Pole News Flash last week, we at the North Pole simply had no idea that our little photo contest would attract so much attention. Indeed, over 1170 entries were submitted, which delighted us so much, causing us to broaden the circle of winners! We knew you all were talented, but the creativity we saw in this contest was simply inspirational and made us laugh. Our tiny Elf jaws dropped to the floor! They were truly Elftastic!
Another amazing aspect of the contest was the amount of creativity we witnessed through your wonderful photos. You definitely had Mrs. Claus and all of the Elves grinning from ear to ear! Oh what fun we had looking at all of your entries! Many of the Elves have tucked these magical ‘Elfcapades’ away for Christmas 2011!! For Mrs. Claus and all of the Elf Magic Elves, the point of the contest was less about winning (or giving away prizes) than to share in each other's Elf Magic memories — we hope you feel the same way!
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Because we had so many photos to choose from, we even had to broaden our categories. You truly did a great job! Without further delay, here are the winning photos.
Congrats to all of our winners!
Click to view all the winning photos.
Finally, we want to make special mention of a particular Elfcapade that was submitted through Santa's favorite website on Christmas Eve. The Elves of two Northwest Florida families, the Duncans and the Harrigills, have truly upped the stakes, instantly causing much discussion and future planning among the Elves upon hearing this Elftastic story!:
"Our Elves decided to bring our outside Christmas in, but threw in a twist when they traded lawn ornaments with the neighboring Elves across the street," reported Mrs. Duncan. "In this picture, you can see [Elf] Polly riding inside of our neighbor's snow globe inside our house!"
Elves plotting mischief in multiple houses — this is
certainly a new era for the Elfcapade!
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Reindeer Games Shine with Great Athletes, Sportsmanship
The Elves and Reindeer work really hard during the year. And though their trips to your homes each year can be considered a well-deserved "holiday," well, let's just say those Elfcapades take their fair share of energy, too! So, you'd think when they all returned to the North Pole after the holidays that the Elves and Reindeer would be ready for a break. It turns out, however, that Elfcapade season is just a warm-up for the Grand Event: the Annual Reindeer Games!
Featuring the Polar Bear Plunge, Sleigh Pulling, Relay Races (including the can't-miss six-legged race!), Dance-Off, Hula Hooping, Limbo, Hurdles and the Snow Ball Toss (a new addition), the Reindeer Games always bring out fans from every corner of the North Pole. And for those who can't attend the live events, ESPM (Elf Sports Pro Magic) always carries the Games in rich HD TV all across the land!
As promised, this year's Games did not disappoint, showing us just how athletic the Elves and Reindeer can be and, more importantly, how important it is to be a good sport. Indeed, at the close of the competition, the Elves and Reindeer proved they know this lesson well, as they could be seen congratulating one another and giving each other high-fives, each simply thrilled to be able to participate!
Now, on to the results:
Last year, it was Donner and Elf Roxanne who each took top honors in their class. But this year it was Blitzen and Elf Charley's turn to shine! Blitzen, in particular, put on a show that will be remembered for many years to come, setting North Pole records in both the Hula Hoop and Sleigh Pull competitions! For his part, Charley didn't break any records, but his intense training routine obviously paid off: The Elves are still talking about how fast he ran in the Races and it turns out that he's not a bad dancer, either!
For their victories, Blitzen received a lifetime membership to
Rudolph's Gym and an all-expenses paid Arctic cruise, while Charley will get to sit right
next to Santa as his co-pilot next Christmas Eve! Charley was also granted an extra week off
of work next year to spend with his host family, the Greens. It pays to train!
2011 Reindeer Games Recap Sleigh Pull Six-Legged Race Christmas Carol Dance-Off Hula Hoop Polar Bear Plunge Limbo Snow Ball Toss |
Fresh Off Christmas Vacation, Elves Gather at Stylish "Snow Ball and Dinner Dance"
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You'd think with all the busyness of Mrs. Claus' 1st Annual Photo Contest that she wouldn't have time for much else, either. But, there's a reason Santa always says he "met his match" when he married Mrs. Claus: She has just as much energy and creativity as he does! So, when it came time to plan this year's Snow Ball and Dinner Dance, we knew Mrs. Claus wouldn't disappoint.
As you know, each year's event has a different theme, but always has the same purpose: To celebrate the Elves' return from Christmas vacation in your homes! The event also happens to occur on New Year's Eve, which is convenient because the Elves always want to celebrate this important night as a family. The Claus' really are so smart!
This year's theme was 'Roaring Twenties,' so Mrs. Claus, along with her planning committee, hired the best jazz band at the North Pole, The Cupid Three, which regularly performs on WTOY, the North Pole’s radio station. Boy Elves were encouraged to dress formally (some even wore top hats!) while girl Elves were to come as flappers — and all were to arrive prepared to dance the night away! And everyone did, of course.
Although the Elves were so excited to catch up with their friends, the highlight of the event had to be the surprise vocal performance by none other than Santa himself, who wowed the crowd by singing songs by Louis Armstrong and Duke Ellington, two of the most famous jazz singers ever! Reportedly, Mrs. Claus blushed the entire time Santa had the mic.
At midnight, a giant, lit-up snow ball was dropped for all to see while the band played 'New Years Day,' a song for children sung to the tune of 'Jingle Bells,' which goes like this:
New Year's Day, New
Year's Day
Comes but once a year
On New Year's Eve we celebrate
And ring it in
with cheer!
As the song came to a close, the Elves danced and hugged, all very thankful for another year of love, adventure and togetherness.
Elf Magic Poem Rings True for One Miami Family
Since Elf Magic began many years ago, Santa and Mrs. Claus have meant for the Timeless Christmas Tradition to be about more than the fun and adventure of an Elf visiting your home (though that's very important, too!). Indeed, the overall purpose of the tradition is right there in the poem that comes with each Elf upon his or her arrival:
So, go visit for Christmas and teach what I've taught,
That the best gifts are those that can never be bought!
That Christmas is brighter and
dreams will come true,
If you share love and kindness in all that you do.
It's in this spirit that two Miami sisters were able to experience the bigger "reason for the season" in 2010, as told by their mother:
"This year our oldest daughter wanted to surprise her little sister by the time [Elf] Gabby arrived. She spent countless hours building a Santa's workshop and Elf home out of cardboard, balsa wood, fabric pieces and miscellaneous Christmas decorations that she found around the house. My daughter insisted that it was her gift for her little sister and would not accept any help."
(It's at this point, of course, that Santa's eyes, while scanning this letter submitted through his favorite website, began to well with tears.)
"When she presented
it," the mother continued, "her little sister was in awe of what her big sister had made.
Our youngest daughter and her friends played hours upon hours in Santa's workshop with their
elves. Through her crafty endeavor, my oldest daughter, without realizing it, was learning
the joy of giving rather than receiving through the happiness she gave her little sister."
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Santa would like to personally thank the Orms family for sharing such a thoughtful,
important story with us. May we be this good to each other all the year long!
Happy New Year, Friends !
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