The story of the bike!!

All our daughter wanted for Christmas was a new bike. She out grew the one we got her when she was 5. She found the bike of her dreams right after school started in September. A mint green Schwinn with a banana seat and high handle bars. Kinda like how the kid in the Christmas Story wanted only a BB gun. Well, on black Friday the kiddos wanted to go out to Fred Meyer and see what it was like going shopping at 5am. Joe and I had a plan. So we split in teams. Curtis and I went to one side of the store and Shayla and Joe went to the other side. Curtis and I found her bike, payed for it and snuck out of the store and hid the bike in our back yard til Joe could find a place to hide it. Thankfully, when we headed back to the store the same parking spot was still available and so was our shopping cart. Shayla would have noticed if we weren't parked in the same spot. She didn't know we left. Then the time came for us to meet up and head home. As we were leaving Shayla went straight to the bikes and noticed her dream bike was no longer there. She started crying and became very upset that someone bought her dream bike. I was trying so hard not to laugh. I told her that Christmas was the season of believing. Joe told her that Santa may have already came and got it for her. At least 3-4 times a week as Christmas grew closer Shayla would say, "I am loosing hope for my bike everyday."

Then on Christmas Eve she left Santa doughnuts. She also left reindeer food outside, cheerios for the elves, dog food and a glass of lemonade. When she woke up on Christmas morning she found that Santa had left her a note on her chalkboard:

Shayla,

     Thank you for everything. I especially liked the lemonade. Not many people leave lemonade, especially north of the equator. I have decided you get to open the first present, after you figure out what the clue means. It is on the plate. Good luck and Merry Christmas.

                                                                                                 Santa

On the plate she found our pickle ornament. The one we usually hide somewhere on tree to be found on Christmas day. She went to our room and was puzzled by this clue. Then she finally figured out that she need to downstairs to the basement to where the canned pickles are. Here is how it all went:

She found out that Santa had given her daddy instructions on where to hide her bike. She was so stinkin excited.

Merry Christmas my sweet girl!!