Well folks, he did it. Sergio was one HAPPY sloth-elf when he reached the top of the tree and crowned it with the star. Luna screamed when Sergio raised his arms in triumph. She was certain he would fall and be severely injured. He reminded her that his legs were still tightly wrapped around the tree trunk and he had lots of practice in tree climbing. After making sure I got a good shot of his goofy grin at the top of the tree, he allowed me to lift him down (thank goodness for small favors) so he could comfort Luna.

After all that work, and worry on Luna’s part, it was of course time for some snacks. So they sat down with some milk and peanut butter on graham crackers and Luna insisted Sergio tell her of his great adventure. The way the two of them carried on you’d have thought Sergio was Sir Edmund Hillary scaling Mount Everest. But I guess in Luna’s eyes, he was. She sees and experiences the world in a different way than most of the rest of us do, and for her, Sergio’s climb up a six foot tree was every bit as fraught with peril as Hillary’s scaling Everest with his Sherpa guide, Tenzing Norgay.

I stayed out of the way, so they could enjoy their recap without any self-consciousness, but I couldn’t help but snicker when Luna would remind Sergio about a moment he had forgotten to tell her. These moments with Luna are so precious … she rarely speaks freely and can only do so with Sergio, when she believes no one else can hear them.

Sergio is obsessed with Santa giving Luna a Christmas miracle — he wants that more than anything in the world. But as I sit and listen to the two of them, I know she already has her Christmas miracle — a sloth named Sergio for her very own. My heart is so full … he is truly her North Star.