In tonight's specially selected Christmas Rewind we're going to fly to New York with a little girl called Ivy, who is on holiday with her family. Ivy believes Santa may be somewhere in this magical city.
Relax, get sleepy, and let’s begin!
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Narrator 🎙️ Abbe Opher
Author 🖋️ Gillian Rogerson
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
00:00:10
Speaker 1: Hello, and welcome back to Kuala Moon, a podcast of
00:00:14
Speaker 1: original children's bedtime stories and meditations designed to make bedtime
00:00:20
Speaker 1: a tree. Tonight's final Christmas story is set somewhere that
00:00:25
Speaker 1: really loves to get dressed up for the festive season,
00:00:29
Speaker 1: New York. Yes, we're very soon going to fly over
00:00:34
Speaker 1: there and get to know a little girl called Ivy.
00:00:37
Speaker 1: But before we do, Coco and I and all the
00:00:41
Speaker 1: team here at sleep h Q would like to take
00:00:44
Speaker 1: this moment to wish you all a very, very merry Christmas. Right,
00:00:50
Speaker 1: it's time to jump into bed, wriggle around a bit,
00:00:54
Speaker 1: to get really snug and comfory under the covers, and
00:00:57
Speaker 1: maybe have a big stretch and yawn. That's it. Move
00:01:03
Speaker 1: and yawn and stretch and sigh until you're ready to stop.
00:01:11
Speaker 1: And then take a big breath in and let it out,
00:01:20
Speaker 1: give yourself a little Christmasy cuddle, and snuggle down into
00:01:24
Speaker 1: your pillow and mattress a bit more. Right now, close
00:01:29
Speaker 1: your eyes and imagine looking up into a dark night
00:01:33
Speaker 1: sky and seeing billowing snowflakes flurrying and tumbling around in
00:01:40
Speaker 1: the air above your head. It's a dark, inky blue
00:01:45
Speaker 1: sky and you can see tiny dots of white dancing
00:01:50
Speaker 1: and sparkling in the moonlight. Now it's a snowy Christmas Eve,
00:01:57
Speaker 1: and we're going to meet a young girl called I've
00:02:00
Speaker 1: and her family on their visit to New York City.
00:02:04
Speaker 1: Ivy is certain she will find Santa Claus somewhere in
00:02:07
Speaker 1: the city, and as the day goes on, she gets
00:02:11
Speaker 1: closer and closer to making that happen. This is Christmas
00:02:17
Speaker 1: in New York by Jillian Rogerson. It was Christmas Eve
00:02:30
Speaker 1: morning and a young girl called Ivy was traveling on
00:02:34
Speaker 1: a plane with her family. They had left their home
00:02:37
Speaker 1: in England hours before and were flying to New York
00:02:41
Speaker 1: to spend Christmas there. No one in Ivy's family had
00:02:45
Speaker 1: been to New York before, and they were all very excited.
00:02:51
Speaker 1: Her dad had made a long list of places they
00:02:53
Speaker 1: should go and things they should see. Ivy's dad loved
00:02:58
Speaker 1: making lists. Ivy was hoping it would snow while they
00:03:03
Speaker 1: were in New York. It would make their visit even
00:03:07
Speaker 1: more magical. An announcement came over the speakers to advise
00:03:12
Speaker 1: the passers by they were about to fly over the
00:03:14
Speaker 1: Statue of Liberty, and if they looked to their left,
00:03:18
Speaker 1: they would get an excellent view of the famous landmark.
00:03:23
Speaker 1: Ivy looked out of the window and saw the magnificent statue.
00:03:28
Speaker 1: She had seen images of it on the television and
00:03:31
Speaker 1: in books, but seeing it in real life was something
00:03:35
Speaker 1: else altogether, and her mouth dropped open in amazement as
00:03:40
Speaker 1: she gazed at the woman made of pale green metal,
00:03:44
Speaker 1: who was holding a torch in one hand and a
00:03:47
Speaker 1: tablet in the other. Ivy's brother, Charlie, was sitting next
00:03:56
Speaker 1: to her. He looked at the statue too, and told
00:03:59
Speaker 1: her some facts about it. He was ten years older
00:04:03
Speaker 1: than Ivy and knew a lot of interesting things. Ivy
00:04:08
Speaker 1: tried to remember the facts he was telling her about
00:04:11
Speaker 1: the statue, but all she could think about was how
00:04:14
Speaker 1: beautiful it was. The plane flew over the statue, and
00:04:20
Speaker 1: Ivy got her first glimpse of New York. She saw
00:04:24
Speaker 1: building after building lined up next to each other. Some
00:04:30
Speaker 1: were so tall they looked like they were touching the sky.
00:04:35
Speaker 1: The plane flew on towards the airport and landed smoothly.
00:04:41
Speaker 1: As Ivy and her family got off the plane, Charlie
00:04:45
Speaker 1: held her hand and kept making sure she was okay.
00:04:49
Speaker 1: She smiled at him and said she was ever so
00:04:52
Speaker 1: excited about visiting New York, and did he think they
00:04:56
Speaker 1: would see Santa Claus in the city. With a soft
00:05:01
Speaker 1: smile aimed at his little sister, Charlie replied, I don't know,
00:05:07
Speaker 1: we might, but Christmas Eve is a busy day for him.
00:05:12
Speaker 1: Ivy nodded, I know, but I hope we get to
00:05:16
Speaker 1: see him. I want to make sure he knows we're
00:05:20
Speaker 1: staying in New York this Christmas. I sent him a
00:05:23
Speaker 1: letter a few weeks ago to tell him. I hope
00:05:26
Speaker 1: he got my letter. Charlie gave her a reassuring smile
00:05:31
Speaker 1: and said, I'm sure he did. Once they'd collected their luggage,
00:05:39
Speaker 1: the family left the bustling airport and climbed into a
00:05:43
Speaker 1: yellow taxi. As they drove along the busy road, Ivy
00:05:50
Speaker 1: looked out of the window at the city. The pavements
00:05:54
Speaker 1: were full of people rushing along, many with overflowing bags
00:05:59
Speaker 1: in their hands. Everyone was dressed up warmly against the
00:06:04
Speaker 1: cold winter air, and their breaths turned into small clouds
00:06:08
Speaker 1: in front of them. Shop windows were ablaze with the
00:06:13
Speaker 1: bright colors of the festive season, green, red, gold, and silver.
00:06:21
Speaker 1: Fairy lights hung from every available surface inside the windows
00:06:27
Speaker 1: and added a magical touch. Christmas trees stood outside the
00:06:32
Speaker 1: shops and were completely covered in twinkling tinsel and glittering lights.
00:06:39
Speaker 1: The streets were decorated with large sparkling stars that hung
00:06:45
Speaker 1: from lamp posts and signs. Ivy saw rows of angels
00:06:51
Speaker 1: made out of silver metal and adorned with sparkling lights.
00:06:57
Speaker 1: Each angel was playing a golden trumpet. The sound of
00:07:02
Speaker 1: jingling bells and cheerful carols came from all directions and
00:07:08
Speaker 1: mingled with the steady noise of the traffic. Before too long,
00:07:15
Speaker 1: the taxi came to a stop outside a luxurious hotel.
00:07:21
Speaker 1: Two enormous Christmas trees stood on either side of the
00:07:26
Speaker 1: revolving entrance door. A man wearing a navy uniform and
00:07:31
Speaker 1: a matching hat were standing in front of the door,
00:07:35
Speaker 1: and when he saw the taxi pulling up, he stepped
00:07:39
Speaker 1: forward and opened the taxi's rear door. The family climbed out,
00:07:46
Speaker 1: and the doormen welcomed them to the hotel. He said
00:07:50
Speaker 1: his name was Robert and advised he would take care
00:07:54
Speaker 1: of their luggage. Robert smiled at the family and said,
00:08:00
Speaker 1: if there's anything you need to know about this, wonderful city.
00:08:04
Speaker 1: Feel free to ask me. I've lived here all my life.
00:08:08
Speaker 1: Ivey had a question for Robert, but she was too
00:08:12
Speaker 1: shy to ask him, so she tugged on Charlie's sleeve
00:08:15
Speaker 1: and whispered her question to him. Charlie said to Robert,
00:08:22
Speaker 1: my sister would like to know if Santa has ever
00:08:25
Speaker 1: stayed here. Robert replied, not to my knowledge, unless he
00:08:32
Speaker 1: was in disguise. He chuckled lightly and smiled at Ivy.
00:08:39
Speaker 1: Ivy smiled back, and her shyness disappeared. She asked Robert
00:08:44
Speaker 1: if he knew where Santa would be that day, as
00:08:47
Speaker 1: she would like to talk to him. Robert gave the
00:08:53
Speaker 1: matter some serious thought and said, if I were Santa,
00:09:00
Speaker 1: I would stop by Central Park at some point today.
00:09:04
Speaker 1: It's a beautiful park. If you go there later, I
00:09:07
Speaker 1: suggest you take a ride in a horse drawn carriage.
00:09:11
Speaker 1: It's a wonderful way to see the park, especially on
00:09:14
Speaker 1: Christmas Eve, and I have it on good authority that
00:09:18
Speaker 1: it's going to snow later on, which will make your
00:09:22
Speaker 1: visit even more magical. The thought of riding on a
00:09:27
Speaker 1: carriage through the snow made Ivy smile, and it made
00:09:33
Speaker 1: her family smile too. Dad made a note on his
00:09:36
Speaker 1: phone and said he would add that to his to
00:09:39
Speaker 1: do list. Ivy had one more question for the kind dorman.
00:09:49
Speaker 1: How big are those Christmas trees behind you? I've never
00:09:53
Speaker 1: seen any that big before. Did they grow in a
00:09:57
Speaker 1: special forest where giants live? Robert chuckled again. He said
00:10:04
Speaker 1: he didn't know where they had come from or how
00:10:07
Speaker 1: tall they were, but they weren't the biggest Christmas trees
00:10:11
Speaker 1: in New York, and Ivy would soon see much bigger ones.
00:10:16
Speaker 1: The family went into the hotel through the revolving door.
00:10:21
Speaker 1: Ivy had never used a revolving door before and went
00:10:25
Speaker 1: around three times before finally stepping into the hotel. Her
00:10:32
Speaker 1: dad walked over to the reception desk and signed them in.
00:10:38
Speaker 1: The inside of the hotel was even more magical than
00:10:42
Speaker 1: the outside, and Christmas decorations hung from the ceiling and
00:10:48
Speaker 1: around every window and door. There were many Christmas trees too,
00:10:54
Speaker 1: all beautifully decorated with tinsel and lights. Dad returned with
00:11:02
Speaker 1: some keys and the family headed to their hotel room.
00:11:07
Speaker 1: As soon as they entered the room, Ivy said, Wow,
00:11:14
Speaker 1: it's enormous. Look at the huge windows and all the
00:11:21
Speaker 1: buildings outside and the Christmas tree in the corner near
00:11:25
Speaker 1: the fireplace, and the she stopped to take a breath.
00:11:30
Speaker 1: There were so many wonderful things to look at, and
00:11:34
Speaker 1: Ivy couldn't take it in all at once. Ivy and
00:11:39
Speaker 1: her family explored the amazing living area and then wandered
00:11:44
Speaker 1: into their bedrooms. There were three bedrooms, and each one
00:11:50
Speaker 1: had a bathroom attached to it. Ivy suddenly remembered something
00:11:56
Speaker 1: in her backpack. She unzipped the backpack and took out
00:12:00
Speaker 1: a couple of Christmas ornaments that she'd brought from their
00:12:03
Speaker 1: home in England. One had been made by Ivy the
00:12:08
Speaker 1: previous year and the other had been made by Charlie
00:12:12
Speaker 1: when he'd been her age. When Mum and dad had
00:12:16
Speaker 1: first seen them, they had said the handmade ornaments were
00:12:20
Speaker 1: the best they'd ever seen. Ivy held up the ornaments
00:12:26
Speaker 1: and said tada. Her parents' faces lit up with joy,
00:12:35
Speaker 1: and they thanked Ivy for bringing the items with her.
00:12:39
Speaker 1: With great care, Ivy placed them on the tree in
00:12:43
Speaker 1: the living area. Mum said, I've brought something from home
00:12:49
Speaker 1: to something I've been secretly making over the last few months.
00:12:55
Speaker 1: Now you don't have to wear them. If you don't
00:12:58
Speaker 1: want to. She opened one of the suitcases and took
00:13:03
Speaker 1: out four hand knitted jumpers in various sizes. They all
00:13:09
Speaker 1: had the same image on them, a dancing reindeer with
00:13:13
Speaker 1: a nose made of sparkling red sequins. Ivy said she
00:13:20
Speaker 1: loved hers. She flung her coat off and pulled on
00:13:24
Speaker 1: the jumper. Charlie and Dad groaned good naturedly, put the
00:13:30
Speaker 1: jumpers on, and then admired themselves in the mirror. They
00:13:35
Speaker 1: said the jumpers were beautiful. Ivy's mom blushed a little
00:13:42
Speaker 1: and popped her jumper onto. The family quickly unpacked and
00:13:47
Speaker 1: then got ready to explore the beautiful city. When they
00:13:52
Speaker 1: left the hotel, Ivy gave the kind doorman a goodbye wave.
00:13:58
Speaker 1: She took Charlie hand and they walked along the bustling pavement.
00:14:04
Speaker 1: The jolly sound of jingling bells and cheerful carols continued
00:14:11
Speaker 1: to drift from all directions and gave the day an
00:14:15
Speaker 1: extra festive feel. The family walked on, taking in the sounds, sights,
00:14:25
Speaker 1: and smells of New York City. Ivy kept looking out
00:14:31
Speaker 1: for Santa Claus just in case. After strolling along the
00:14:37
Speaker 1: streets for a while, Ivy's dad looked at the to
00:14:41
Speaker 1: do list on his phone and asked if the family
00:14:45
Speaker 1: would like to visit a toy shop. He said, apparently,
00:14:50
Speaker 1: it's one of the biggest ones in the world. Ivy
00:14:55
Speaker 1: and Charlie immediately said yes. The family headed towards the
00:15:01
Speaker 1: toy shop and went through an entrance that looked like
00:15:05
Speaker 1: a castle drawbridge. There were toys everywhere inside, absolutely everywhere,
00:15:15
Speaker 1: on the many many shelves, on the circular display tables,
00:15:22
Speaker 1: and overflowing from boxes piled up in corners. There were
00:15:28
Speaker 1: some big sofas and armchairs arranged around a tall, twinkling
00:15:33
Speaker 1: Christmas tree, and sitting on them were an assortment of
00:15:37
Speaker 1: huge teddy bears dressed in pajamas. In a voice full
00:15:43
Speaker 1: of awe Ivy said, I don't know where to look first,
00:15:50
Speaker 1: there's so much to see. Her dad suggested they start
00:15:57
Speaker 1: on the top floor and work their way down. The
00:16:02
Speaker 1: others thought that was a good idea. They walked over
00:16:06
Speaker 1: to a lift that was shaped like a hot air balloon,
00:16:11
Speaker 1: and once inside it, they were taken smoothly up to
00:16:15
Speaker 1: the top floor. The family strolled leisurely around each floor,
00:16:22
Speaker 1: looking at a wide variety of toys, including puzzles, boardy games, jigsaws,
00:16:29
Speaker 1: and books. Ivy had been saving her pocket money for
00:16:34
Speaker 1: months and had it tucked in her backpack. She stopped
00:16:38
Speaker 1: now and again to look at some of the toys,
00:16:40
Speaker 1: but nothing caught her eye, so she left her money
00:16:43
Speaker 1: where it was. Even though Charlie kept saying he was
00:16:47
Speaker 1: too old for toys, Ivy noticed that he stopped many
00:16:51
Speaker 1: times to look at many items, including toy trains and
00:16:55
Speaker 1: jigsaws with pictures of planets on them. After the family
00:16:59
Speaker 1: had won around the shop and seen everything they wanted to,
00:17:03
Speaker 1: Mom thought it was a good idea to stop for
00:17:05
Speaker 1: a snack. She had already spotted a cafe on the
00:17:08
Speaker 1: ground floor and noticed they sold hot chocolate and warm
00:17:12
Speaker 1: cinnamon rolls, amongst other things. They went straight to the
00:17:16
Speaker 1: cafe and were served by people dressed up as elves.
00:17:20
Speaker 1: Mom placed their order. The mugs of hot chocolate came
00:17:24
Speaker 1: topped with small mountains of whipped cream and soft marshmallows.
00:17:29
Speaker 1: The cinnamon rolls were soft and very tasty. Ivy and
00:17:35
Speaker 1: her family took their snacks over to a window table
00:17:38
Speaker 1: and gazed out at the buildings and busy streets. Joyful
00:17:42
Speaker 1: festive tunes came softly from the speakers inside the cafe.
00:17:49
Speaker 1: Ivey said she was having a lovely time in New York.
00:17:53
Speaker 1: Her family said they were too. They thoroughly enjoyed their
00:17:57
Speaker 1: drinks and rolls and were soon ready to continue on
00:18:01
Speaker 1: their holiday adventure. The family left the huge toy shop
00:18:07
Speaker 1: and went to a nearby ice skating rink. Charlie helped
00:18:12
Speaker 1: Ivy to put on her skates. He held her hand
00:18:16
Speaker 1: as they moved smoothly around the sparkling ice. Ivy had
00:18:20
Speaker 1: never skated before and was a bit wobbly at first,
00:18:24
Speaker 1: but with her brother's support, she soon became more confident,
00:18:28
Speaker 1: and by the end of their time on the ice,
00:18:31
Speaker 1: she'd even managed to perform a small twirl. Ivy asked Charlie,
00:18:38
Speaker 1: do you think Santa can skate? Do you think Santa
00:18:42
Speaker 1: can skate? Charlie replied probably. He lives in a snowy land,
00:18:49
Speaker 1: so there will be lots of places to skate or
00:18:52
Speaker 1: even ski there. Ivy said she would ask Santa if
00:18:57
Speaker 1: she saw him. Later skating, the family headed towards one
00:19:02
Speaker 1: of the many outdoor Christmas markets. On the way, Ivy's
00:19:07
Speaker 1: dad took them down a long Street and stopped in
00:19:10
Speaker 1: front of a tall building. He pointed to something in
00:19:14
Speaker 1: front of it and said, what do you think about
00:19:18
Speaker 1: that Christmas tree? Ivy? There was a ginormous Christmas tree
00:19:24
Speaker 1: in front of them. It was the biggest tree that
00:19:27
Speaker 1: Ivy had ever seen, and she couldn't stop staring at it.
00:19:32
Speaker 1: The amazing tree was covered in sparkling gold and silver lights,
00:19:38
Speaker 1: and a huge star was on the top of it.
00:19:41
Speaker 1: The star shone brighter than any star in the sky.
00:19:47
Speaker 1: Ivy was too surprised to speak and could only stare
00:19:51
Speaker 1: at the beautiful tree in utter astonishment. The soft glow
00:19:56
Speaker 1: coming from the tree was reflected on her happy face.
00:20:01
Speaker 1: Her parents smiled down at Ivy and Charlie put his
00:20:05
Speaker 1: arm around her. After a good five minutes of staring
00:20:09
Speaker 1: at the tree, Ivy finally looked away and said she
00:20:14
Speaker 1: was ready to go to the market. As she walked away,
00:20:18
Speaker 1: she couldn't resist looking over her shoulder and getting one
00:20:22
Speaker 1: final glimpse of the tree. The Christmas market was a
00:20:27
Speaker 1: short walk away, and as the family got closer to it,
00:20:31
Speaker 1: the mouth watering smell of hot cooked food drifted towards them.
00:20:37
Speaker 1: Charlie said he was hungry again. His family said they
00:20:41
Speaker 1: were too and walked towards a line of food stalls.
00:20:46
Speaker 1: They chose hot dog and fries from a friendly faced
00:20:49
Speaker 1: man who was wearing a Santa hat. The portions were huge.
00:20:55
Speaker 1: Ivy and her family strolled around the festive market, look
00:21:00
Speaker 1: looking at all the items on display. Ivy saw something
00:21:06
Speaker 1: that caught her attention. There was a stall selling handmade
00:21:10
Speaker 1: soaps and bubble bath bottles. The woman who ran the
00:21:14
Speaker 1: stool noticed Ivy looking at the items and gave her
00:21:17
Speaker 1: a free sample of lavender scented bubble bath in a
00:21:21
Speaker 1: little bottle. The woman said, I use lavender a lot
00:21:27
Speaker 1: in my lotions. I love the smell of it in
00:21:30
Speaker 1: my baths, especially at night time. Ivey said she loved
00:21:35
Speaker 1: having a bath too. She took the lid off the
00:21:39
Speaker 1: bottle and smelled the liquid. A wonderful scent of lavender
00:21:45
Speaker 1: was very soothing and relaxing. It reminded Ivy of the
00:21:50
Speaker 1: bubble bar she had before bedtime and how sleepy and
00:21:54
Speaker 1: happy she felt. Afterwards, Ivy told the woman that she
00:21:59
Speaker 1: would like to buy a bottle. Please, is it for you?
00:22:04
Speaker 1: The woman asked. Ivy shook her head and said it
00:22:08
Speaker 1: was for a special person. The woman nodded in understanding
00:22:13
Speaker 1: and said she would wrap the present up. She carefully
00:22:17
Speaker 1: covered the bottle in silver paper and tied it with
00:22:21
Speaker 1: a pale purple ribbon. She put the bottle in a
00:22:24
Speaker 1: little silver bag and added a small amount of dried
00:22:28
Speaker 1: lavender and explained it could be sprinkled into the bath
00:22:33
Speaker 1: as an extra treat. Ivy paid for the item and
00:22:37
Speaker 1: thanked the woman. She placed the silver gift bag carefully
00:22:42
Speaker 1: in her backpack, her satisfied smiled on her little face.
00:22:48
Speaker 1: Her parents and brother didn't ask who the present was for,
00:22:52
Speaker 1: and assumed it was for one of Ivy's friends at school.
00:22:57
Speaker 1: The family continued exploring the market. Mum bought some wooden
00:23:03
Speaker 1: ornaments for their Christmas tree, and Dad bought a fridge
00:23:08
Speaker 1: magnet shaped like the Statue of Liberty. He bought magnets
00:23:12
Speaker 1: every time they went on holiday, and their fridge at
00:23:15
Speaker 1: home was completely covered in them. Mum had gently suggested
00:23:22
Speaker 1: that he stopped buying so many, but Dad had grinned
00:23:27
Speaker 1: and said perhaps they should buy a bigger fridge instead.
00:23:31
Speaker 1: Charlie bought a snow globe for Ivy. Inside it was
00:23:36
Speaker 1: the enormous tree she had been mesmerized by earlier, only
00:23:40
Speaker 1: on a much smaller scale. He gave it to his
00:23:44
Speaker 1: little sister straight away as a memento of their first
00:23:48
Speaker 1: day in New York. Ivy gave him a hug and
00:23:53
Speaker 1: then carefully placed the precious snow globe into her backpack.
00:24:00
Speaker 1: His dad surprised everyone by saying it was time for
00:24:03
Speaker 1: their visit to the theater. What theater, Ivy asked. Dad
00:24:10
Speaker 1: smiled and said, it's one of my Christmas gifts to
00:24:15
Speaker 1: you all. There's a theater not far away that puts
00:24:19
Speaker 1: on a special show every year. It's got thousands of
00:24:23
Speaker 1: wonderful reviews online. I bought the tickets months ago, and
00:24:28
Speaker 1: we've got great seats. The family said thank you and
00:24:34
Speaker 1: followed Ivy's dad as he led them expertly through the
00:24:38
Speaker 1: busy streets as if he had lived in New York
00:24:41
Speaker 1: for months. The theater building was bedecked with festive decorations
00:24:48
Speaker 1: both outside and inside. The family were escorted to their
00:24:54
Speaker 1: seats by a woman dressed in a bright red jumpsuit
00:24:58
Speaker 1: which was edged gold sequins. They settled down in their
00:25:03
Speaker 1: seats and waited for the show to begin. They didn't
00:25:08
Speaker 1: have to wait long. Soft music filled the theater and
00:25:14
Speaker 1: the curtains swished to the sides. The festive show began
00:25:21
Speaker 1: and dancing people filled the stage. The story being played
00:25:26
Speaker 1: out was about Santa and how he wanted to learn
00:25:30
Speaker 1: how to dance on stage. Santa flew from one country
00:25:36
Speaker 1: to another and learned lots of dance moves from various people.
00:25:41
Speaker 1: He was very good at dancing, and the songs that
00:25:44
Speaker 1: accompanied his moves were upbeat and cheerful. The stage, Santa
00:25:49
Speaker 1: encouraged the audience to dance along with him. Ivy stood
00:25:54
Speaker 1: up and wiggled from side to side. Her mum and
00:25:58
Speaker 1: dad did too. Charlie said he was too grown up
00:26:02
Speaker 1: to be dancing with Santa, but a long hopeful look
00:26:06
Speaker 1: from Ivy made him stand up and join in. Anyway,
00:26:11
Speaker 1: the show was wonderful, and all too soon we came
00:26:16
Speaker 1: to an end. The family left the theater with Ivy
00:26:20
Speaker 1: still digging from side to side. The day had turned
00:26:25
Speaker 1: darker and a few thick clouds drifted across the sky.
00:26:31
Speaker 1: More lights had been turned on in the city and
00:26:34
Speaker 1: made New York sparkle and shine. Ivy asked her dad
00:26:42
Speaker 1: if they could visit Central Park and go on a
00:26:45
Speaker 1: carriage ride. He smiled down at her and said, of course,
00:26:51
Speaker 1: this seems the perfect thing to do right now. I
00:26:55
Speaker 1: think it might start snowing soon. The family walked towards
00:27:01
Speaker 1: the park, and the sky grew a little darker. More
00:27:06
Speaker 1: clouds drifted into view. When they arrived at the park,
00:27:11
Speaker 1: they saw a line of empty horse drawn carriages and
00:27:15
Speaker 1: walked towards it. They got into the nearest carriage and
00:27:21
Speaker 1: settled into the comfy seats and snuggled down beneath soft,
00:27:27
Speaker 1: warm blankets. Ivy pulled her cover right up to her chin.
00:27:33
Speaker 1: She felt very warm and cozy. The woman driving the
00:27:37
Speaker 1: carriage gave her horse the signal to move with a
00:27:43
Speaker 1: gentle neigh from the horse, The carriage set off through
00:27:47
Speaker 1: the park. Trees lined the path ahead and were decorated
00:27:53
Speaker 1: with strings of fairy lights that twinkled brightly. The horse
00:27:59
Speaker 1: clip clock along the path. The snow began to silently fall,
00:28:06
Speaker 1: and it settled lightly on the ground. Ivy's dad pulled
00:28:12
Speaker 1: the roof of the carriage up and then snuggled down
00:28:16
Speaker 1: beneath his blanket again. Ivy gazed out at the snowy park.
00:28:23
Speaker 1: A few minutes later, she saw a man dressed in
00:28:27
Speaker 1: red clothes sitting on a bench beneath a tree. He
00:28:32
Speaker 1: had a thick white beard and twinkling eyes. Ivy let
00:28:38
Speaker 1: out a little gasp and said, Oh, it's Saner. Look
00:28:44
Speaker 1: there he is on that bench. Can we say hello
00:28:47
Speaker 1: to him? Please? Her parents smiled and asked why she
00:28:54
Speaker 1: thought he was center. I just know he is, Ivy
00:29:00
Speaker 1: replied firmly. Can we talk to him? Dad nodded and
00:29:06
Speaker 1: asked the woman driving a carriage to stop for a while.
00:29:11
Speaker 1: Ivy and her family got out and walked over to
00:29:14
Speaker 1: the man. He gave them a cheery greeting. Ivy reached
00:29:20
Speaker 1: into her backpack and pulled out the little silver gift bag.
00:29:25
Speaker 1: She asked her mom if it was okay to give
00:29:28
Speaker 1: the present to Santa. Her mom nodded. Ivy smiled at
00:29:34
Speaker 1: the man, gave him the present and said, Hi, Santa,
00:29:39
Speaker 1: this is for you. It's bubble bath and you can
00:29:43
Speaker 1: use it after you've been on all your visits tonight.
00:29:48
Speaker 1: The man said, but it's very kind of you. Thank you.
00:29:55
Speaker 1: Ivy asked if he visited New York often and if
00:29:59
Speaker 1: he could skate, and did he like going to the
00:30:01
Speaker 1: outdoor markets. The man said he loved visiting New York
00:30:07
Speaker 1: and his favorite place to be was Central Park, especially
00:30:12
Speaker 1: in the snow, and that's why he had stopped there
00:30:15
Speaker 1: that evening. He said. But I can't rest here a
00:30:21
Speaker 1: moment longer. Christmas Eve is my busiest time and I
00:30:26
Speaker 1: have a lot to do. Thank you again for this
00:30:29
Speaker 1: thoughtful present. I do love a bubble bath, especially before bedtime.
00:30:37
Speaker 1: Ivy had one more question, Santa. When people go on
00:30:42
Speaker 1: holiday at Christmas, do you know where to deliver their presents.
00:30:48
Speaker 1: The man nodded again. He stood up and said he
00:30:52
Speaker 1: really must be going. He wished them a merry Christmas
00:30:57
Speaker 1: and walked towards the trees behind him. Bye, Santa, Ivy
00:31:05
Speaker 1: said with a wave. Her family smiled softly at her.
00:31:11
Speaker 1: A few moments later, the sound of jingle bells filled
00:31:16
Speaker 1: the air, and then from behind the trees, the man
00:31:21
Speaker 1: in red rose into the sky. He was sitting inside
00:31:26
Speaker 1: a golden sleigh, which was being pulled by reindeer. Ivy
00:31:32
Speaker 1: waved again at Santa. He waved back. Ivy's family stared
00:31:41
Speaker 1: and stared at the flying sleigh. Her dad muttered, it's Santa,
00:31:49
Speaker 1: it really is Santa I know, Ivy replied. She yawned
00:31:59
Speaker 1: and said she was very tired. Her family was still
00:32:04
Speaker 1: staring at the sky. The woman who was driving the
00:32:08
Speaker 1: carriage was staring at the sky too. They watched Santa
00:32:14
Speaker 1: fly further and further away. Ivy got back into the
00:32:19
Speaker 1: carriage and snuggled down under her blanket. Her family soon
00:32:24
Speaker 1: joined her. Her dad was still mumbling to himself about
00:32:29
Speaker 1: seeing Santa Claus. Ivy gave him a tired smile and
00:32:34
Speaker 1: asked if they could go back to the hotel please.
00:32:39
Speaker 1: She yawned. One by one, her family yawned too. The
00:32:46
Speaker 1: carriage turned around and took the family back to the
00:32:50
Speaker 1: park's entrance. Dad hailed a taxi and everyone bundled into it.
00:32:59
Speaker 1: A short later, Ivy and her family were back in
00:33:04
Speaker 1: their hotel room. Dressed in fleecy pajamas. They snuggled up
00:33:11
Speaker 1: together on the sofa and watched a Christmas movie. Ivy
00:33:17
Speaker 1: could barely keep her eyes open. She leaned against her
00:33:22
Speaker 1: brother and closed her eyes. Very soon she drifted into
00:33:29
Speaker 1: a gentle sleep. Outside, the snow continued to fall softly
00:33:37
Speaker 1: over the magical city of New York.