A dad dressed as an elf to greet his daughter at the airport — and it's the best thing you'll see today
There are dad jokes, and then there's this.
A Kansas man is going viral for this adorable homecoming greeting. On Dec. 16, Doug Payne greeted his daughter Courtney at Kansas City International Airport (MCI) — but it wasn't your typical welcome home. He dressed up, head to toe, in a green elf costume, lights, a hat and even the signature "elf" shoes. Doug also held up a sign with Courtney's name, suggesting she was on "Santa's Naughty List."

Doug has been dressing up to greet his daughter at the airport since she's been flying back from graduate school in Portland, but this is arguably the most outrageous, not to mention charming, costume yet. Other signs included "Kardashian" and "KC Welcomes Miranda Lambert."
A few weeks ago, over Thanksgiving, Doug held up a sign that said, "Welcome to KC Miss Oregon Courtney Payne." He dressed in a flannel shirt, a la Paul Bunyan.
Courtney told USA Today, "This is just his personality," adding that "Everybody sees what's happening. We're in the airport for about 20 minutes while he continues the show. He likes to hold up the sign."
Understandably, Courtney's reaction to the elf costume was hilarious and heartwarming. You can watch the full video here:
Courtney never expected the tweet to pick up as much interest as it did (more than 35,000 views and counting!). Since then, her story has been translated into various languages all over the world. She's even received messages from children who grew up without fathers or lost theirs. We're not crying, you're crying.
She'll graduate in June, so her upcoming spring break might just be the cherry on top of the cake. While Courtney is expecting that her dad will do something even more over the top, he won't tell her what.
One thing's for sure: If this elf costume was any indication, the next one will be even more of a hoot. We can't wait to see what he comes up with next.
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Rewards Rate
| 2X miles | 2 miles per dollar on every purchase |
| 5X miles | 5 miles per dollar on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel |
| 10X miles | 10 miles per dollar on hotels and rental cars booked through Capital One Business Travel |
Intro Offer
Earn 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200K miles when you spend $150K in the first 6 monthsLIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus milesAnnual Fee
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Why We Chose It
The Capital One Venture X Business Card has all the Capital One Venture X Rewards Credit Card has to offer and more. It offers an incredible welcome bonus and requires an equally impressive spend to qualify. In addition, the card comes with premium travel perks like annual travel credit. (Partner offer)Pros
- The Capital One Venture X business card has a very lucrative welcome offer.
- In addition, the card comes with many premium travel perks such as an annual $300 credit for bookings through Capital One Business Travel.
- Business owners are also able to add employee cards for free.
Cons
- The card requires significant spending to earn the welcome offer.
- Another drawback is that the annual travel credit can only be used on bookings made through Capital One Business Travel.
- LIMITED-TIME OFFER: Earn up to 400K bonus miles: 200K miles when you spend $30K in the first 3 months, and an additional 200k miles when you spend $150k in the first 6 months
- Earn unlimited 2X miles on every purchase, everywhere—with no limits or category restrictions
- Earn 10X miles on hotels and rental cars and 5X miles on flights and vacation rentals booked through Capital One Business Travel
- With no preset spending limit, enjoy big purchasing power that adapts so you can spend more and earn more rewards
- Empower your teams to make business purchases while earning rewards on their transactions, with free employee and virtual cards. Plus, automatically sync your transaction data with your accounting software and pay your vendors with ease
- Redeem your miles on flights, hotels and more. Plus, transfer your miles to any of the 15+ travel loyalty programs
- Every year, you'll get 10,000 bonus miles after your account anniversary date. Plus, receive an annual $300 credit for bookings made through Capital One Business Travel
- Receive up to a $120 credit for Global Entry or TSA PreCheck®. Enjoy access to 1,300+ airport lounges worldwide, including Capital One Lounge locations and Priority Pass™ lounges, after enrollment
- Enjoy a $100 experience credit and other premium benefits with every hotel and vacation rental booked from the Premier Collection
- This is a pay-in-full card, so your balance is due in full every month

