“It came without ribbons, it came without tags. It came without packages, boxes, or bags,” said the Grinch in the hit Christmas classic.
And this was certainly the case for one North Carolina family who got a visit from a teeny tiny ‘Grinch’ on a mission.”
In a hilarious story that could rival any holiday movie, Katie and Scott Reintgen found themselves in the midst of a Christmas chaos orchestrated by no one they expected.
Their three-year-old son.
The story begins at 3 a.m. on Christmas morning, when the couple was jolted awake by their eager 3-year-old son. He had just one request: scissors.
He needed scissors.
“He wanted to open up his Spider-Man web shooters, so, naturally, he needed scissors to cut them free,” said his father, Scott Reintgen.
That’s when we realized something had gone terribly wrong.”
Scott, a sci-fi and fantasy writer, took to social media to share the ordeal, revealing how their young explorer had unwrapped not just his presents but the entire family’s gifts. The clip quickly went viral with more than 6 million views.
The Reintgens and their mischievous little ‘Grinch’, bottom right. Photo courtesy of the Reintgens
Scott, a sci-fi and fantasy writer, took to social media to share the ordeal, revealing how their young explorer had unwrapped not just his presents but the entire family’s gifts. The clip quickly went viral with more than 6 million views.
“Yall,” Reintgen wrote on X, formerly Twitter. “My three year old came down at 3am and unwrapped EVERYONE’S presents.”
The accompanying photo showcased the aftermath: torn wrapping paper scattered around the tree, a scene reminiscent of a holiday-themed tornado.
In an interview, the amused parents described the surreal experience, emphasizing that there was not a single gift left untouched by the tiny Christmas enthusiast.
“There was the cold realization that all the effort you put in the night before had suddenly been undone, but mostly, it was just such an unbelievable thing to see,” Scott said. “There was not one thing that he left unscathed — it was all of it.”
The parents swiftly jumped into action, with Katie leading the charge in a heroic rewrapping mission. The clock was ticking, and the 6 a.m. wake-up call from their other two children loomed. The race was on to restore the magic of Christmas before it was officially unveiled to the entire family.
Katie rewrapped enough gifts in time to, in her husband’s words, “stop the villain origin story” from playing out between the 3-year-old and his 6-year-old brother, who still believes in Santa.
The Reintgen toddlers. Photo courtesy of the Reintgens
“Sure, we could have gotten angry at our kid unwrapping all the presents — or we could have fun with it,” Scott said, describing it as “the best possible disaster.” “We will 100 percent be sharing this at his wedding. It’s one of those unbelievable stories.”
After about 30 minutes, Katie had managed to re-wrap all of the presents.
“She was the hero of the night for the repackaging job she did,” Scott said.
With little rest, the children were up at 6 a.m., racing to the tree, no one the wiser, despite a few gifts with the wrong name on them.
The 6-year-old, who is a strict rules follower, was stunned when the mishap was revealed, Scott said.
“I think he was shocked that the 3-year-old undid Santa’s work,” the father said. “He thought what his brother did was against the rules.”
The parents said they did use this as a lesson in letting others have the joy of opening presents on their own, with the little one agreeing, but saying he was “just trying to help,” they said.
“Some people were like, ‘We’d be so furious,’” Scott said, “but this is the funniest thing that has happened this year.”
As to next Christmas, Scott holds out hope that there won’t be a repeat.
“I think he legitimately just felt that he was doing a service to everyone. He will not do it again next year, we hope.”
Watch below for a look at the Christmas chaos!
Sources: Washington Post | People
