The February Fairy

It's finally February and I couldn't be more excited! What an awesome month for my family. Seriously, it doesn't get any better than February. Although, November and May come in a close second and third, February, by far, ranks No. 1 in our house.

You know why? Oh no, it's not because all our birthdays are in that month, or because it's Hubby and I's anniversary or anything like that. It's definitely not because of Valentine's Day. That day lost its excitement YEARS ago!

It's because every February we all get a visit from the Snot Fairy. You haven't heard of her? Well, she is quite the lady, and SO giving. She always arrives with many gifts. Some years she just brings us snot, but if were REALLY good, she brings us boxes of cough, some sacks of headaches and some tins full of fever. Once in a while we get some candy chills to go with the fever. Oh, it's the best!

We just can't wait each year and wonder who will get the Snot Fairy gifts first. I've realized, like Santa, the Snot Fairy usually gives her presents to the youngest in the family before anyone else. I think it's 'cause the rest of have more to lose and more to miss out on. I'm not sure, but it seems whoever the baby is in the family gets Snot Fairy presents first and, lucky for her, she usually gets to keep them ALL month long. The rest of us only have our presents a week or two. It doesn't seem fair.

When the Snot Fairy visits in February, she helps us spend time decorating our house too. You know, to keep us in the spirit and really celebrate this splendid time of year. Every room in the house is adorned with boxes of Kleenex, some half full, some almost empty. The counters and tables are graciously ornamented with crumpled up used tissues, some green, some clear. The trash cans overflow with piles and piles of tissues, and the lovely sounds of sniffles and snorts resound throughout.

During her visit, our home is filled with the aromatic combination of menthylatum, hand sanitizer and hot tea, with the occasional chicken noodle soup scent. The heat is turned up a little higher, blankies are readily available on all the couches, and movies are playing on every TV. She turns our entire house into a sealed-up snot box, packed full of germs. It's hard to describe the wonder we all feel when she's here.

What's really exciting each year is to see who gets what and the level in which they get it. This year my youngest daughter got her presents first, of course, a giant box of snot, followed with a little cough, AND she got this all on her birthday, to boot! Yippee!

As usual, she still has her thoughtful gifts from the Snot Fairy and probably will all month. The Snot Fairy also blessed her with a stocking full of extreme sleepiness to go with her other gifts this year, so by midday the poor girl looks like death warmed over. Lucky her!

My oldest daughter got a shiny box full of stuffy nose this last week and then a gift bag full of chest cold this week. She is SO thrilled! It's exactly what she was hoping for, since she has school, tests and plays sports. I don't know if she sent a list to the Snot Fairy since she's almost 12 years old now, but if she did, I know that's what she would have asked for.

My middle daughter must have either been bad last year or her turn is coming, but thus far she hasn't really received very many presents. She only got a tiny box of runny nose and barely a cup of cough. I think her presents are being shipped but just currently on backorder, expected to arrive mid to end of February. We'll see, though.

I, however, got my presents from the Snot Fairy early Sunday morning when I totally was not expecting it. I couldn't have been more shocked to wake up to boxes and gift bags full of stuffy nose, headache, cough and exhaustion. Wow!! Thank you, Snot Fairy! You out did yourself! What did I do to deserve all this!

Apparently all the vitamins, herbs and gallons of water I was inhaling didn't deter the Snot Fairy. No hand sanitizer on this earth was going to stop her from giving me her presents.

As much as I appreciate all she's done for me personally, I'd really rather she cut back and not do so much. I'm the mom. I have to help my kids with all their lovely gifts, not have some of my own. I'm pretty sure the Snot Fairy doesn't care about that though.

Her job is come each February, like clockwork, bearing gifts for all to enjoy the whole month through.

Sure will miss her come March.