Package arrived!!! First I have to ask: how on earth did I get so lucky? And I apologize ahead of time for the length of this post. It’s necessary to properly express my gratitude and brag on my incredible santa!

So, it’s pretty much the best day ever today. I got off work early (!) and I’m loudly singing some embarrassing music from my “guilty pleasure” playlist, feelin’ like Freddie Mercury. I get home and see the package on my porch, tried to leap out with my seatbelt on, managed to get it off without strangling myself, then rushed to get the package inside. My dog daughters were even more excited then I was! They didn’t want me to open it before they could do a thorough sniff test.

When I got it open... let’s just say I’m still in shock. Seriously the most AMAZING gift I think I’ve ever gotten, and I haven’t even figured the puzzles out yet! So here’s what happened/ what’s in the package:

It took all the patience I had to take pictures of each item before tearing open the next. I saw the notes and then two (3-D printed!?!) crests, and then McGonagall’s wand, and I died. Those 3 things were more than enough to make the best present ever! I told my Santa I was a Ravenclaw by Pottermore standards, but I’ve always loved Slytherin the most. My Santa made me crests for BOTH houses! How awesome is that!? I can’t get over that, and that would have been enough to get 11/10.

Then...

The extra papers. They included quotes from Harry Potter (with hidden messages, I later found out), a cypher type coded fill-in-the-blanks puzzle (!!!) which seriously romanced my soul, and an envelope that said “Break in case of no HP books.” My parents gave away my HP books when I left for college many years ago, but I had read them all three times before that, so I thought maybe I wouldn’t need to break into that envelope just yet... then I ended up breaking into it because I was too exited, and HOLY SHIT!!! Santa included a USB drive of ALL THE HARRY POTTER BOOKS!! I’m just... wow wow wow. My brother thinks I’m insane because I’m out of breath while telling him about it on the phone.

Then, there’s the green box and a green and grey cypher scroll/puzzle... pretty sure they’re both also 3-D printed, and they are the coolest things I’ve ever seen. My santa really read my info and knew that I love a good challenge! So perfect! I’ve been working on cracking the numeric code for the first cypher scroll box, and I just had to post early because I don’t know how long it’ll take me to crack this (and the second box!!) and I’m going to take my time with it and really enjoy it :) then there’s also the last wrapped box to consider! So so so happy, best santa ever!!

This is my first exchange receiving a gift, since I usually just sign up to be a rematch santa for exchanges, and I really thought I would end up getting my own rematch santa when the deadline hit and my gift wasn’t marked shipped, but my INCREDIBLE santa messaged me a very lengthy, wonderful message to explain the handmade nature of the gift, hence the tardiness, and I was 70 times more excited than when I signed up! I never could have imagined this though. This has made my year.

My santa SERIOUSLY made this a special, unforgettable experience for me. I can’t thank you enough, Santa!! You’ve made my HP dreams come true. I need to repay you somehow!

Follow this gift for updates, I’ll update when I crack all of the codes! Can’t wait!!

UPDATE #1: Got the 5th part of the clue I need to open the first scroll, and after work today I’m going to scour the books (on the USB drive my santa kindly sent me) to find the next clue and hopefully get the scroll open! Then there’s only 2 more parts to do, the mysterious green puzzle box, and the mysterious wrapped box. On a magical adventure! I’ll keep updating as I crack the clues! Love that this is likely to be a weeklong present journey for me :)

UPDATE #2: Cracked the scroll! Inside was a threatening note from my favorite Slytherin babe, Bellatrix! Hmmm... very intriguing, and I fear I must destroy the beautiful 3-D printed Ravenclaw crest my santa gave me to find the next clue! Hail House Slytherin though! :) what a cool idea!! I get get to be punk rock and break stuff in the name of Bellatrix!

UPDATE #3: Found a key! Feeling very punk rock right now. I followed Bellatrix’s advice and destroyed the Ravenclaw crest by way of fire (and a little bit of pocket knife), and found a small green key! Onto the next, opening the mysterious green box...

UPDATE #4: inside the green box was a Snape keychain! :) see the photo for my caption for more comments on it. Gods, I’m fracking ecstatic right now.

UPDATE #5: opened the last gift! An absolutely PERFECT cauldron mug! Thank you so so so much Santa, for everything. Days of adventure and the best gift I’ve ever received.