When four of Santa's elves got sick, and the trainee elves did not produce the toys as fast as the regular ones, Santa was beginning to feel the pressure of being behind schedule.
Then Mrs. Claus told Santa that her Mother was coming for a nice long visit. That news stressed out Santa even more.
When he went to harness the reindeer he found that three of them were about to give birth and two others had jumped the fence and were out there heaven-knows-where. More stress. Then, when he began to load the sleigh, one of the boards cracked and the toy bag fell to the ground scattering the toys everywhere.
Totally vexed, Santa went into the house for a cup of apple cider and a shot of rum. When he went to the cupboard he discovered the elves had hidden the liquor and there was nothing to drink. In his frustration he accidentally dropped the cider pot shattering it into hundreds of tiny pieces all over the kitchen floor. He went to get the broom to sweep up the mess only to discover that the mice had eaten the straw end of it.
Just then to doorbell rang. A very irritated and totally out-of-sorts Santa trudged to the door. He flung it open and glared out only to find a sweet little angel standing before him with a great big Christmas tree. The little angel said in a bright and cheery voice, "Merry Christmas, Santa! Isn't it a lovely day? I have come with a beautiful tree for you. Now if you'll just tell me where you would like me to stick it . . ."
And so began the tradition of the little angel on top of the Christmas tree.
