Connecting moms in Polk County, Fla.

The Visit: Elf on the Shelf

I've heard of 'Elf on the Shelf' from you ladies a few years back but never incorporated it into our Christmas routine. Considering the tousles my youngest two sometimes get in with each other, it could be an awesome thing to do, to nod over to an eavesdropping elf and say, "The elf is watching you".

I largely forgot about this tradition but I had three, yes 3! moms email me this morning about a funny blog a mommy wrote called, Over Achieving Elf on the Shelf Mommies. To preempt that link, there are some rough around the edges language in there but I'm going to admit to head nodding and laughing as I read it.

In the blog you can get the general idea of how the elf works but if you want to explore other feedback Amazon has several listings of reviews and sells the kit: The Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Tradition to get one started.

Do you have an elf on the shelf tradition in your household? If so, does your elf get into mischief or is he just hanging out to report back to Santa?

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Permalink Reply by Shawn Spivey on December 27, 2011 at 11:50am

Okay, I guess I "you snooze, you lose" on this one. I went to Books-a-Million last night and they were all out of the Elf on the Shelf set that I had seen less than a week ago. At that time, there was a lot there. I suppose I should have been there early to get the worm. :)

Were any of you lucky enough to get an after Christmas deal on an elf?

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Permalink Reply by LittleC'sMom on December 31, 2011 at 11:21pm

I was lucky enough to pick up our 2nd elf at the Hallmark store on 540A the day after Christmas for 40% off. I picked up the skirt at Target for 50% off since our current elf will be bringing his sister with him next year. At first I thought it would be silly to buy a whole second kit, but down the road, both of my kids can have their own elf and book to share with their own families.

This was our first year with an elf and it was a huge hit! I was one of the overachieving mommies, but our elf was not mischievous, but rather silly. He was there to encourage good behavior and fun, not to teach the kids to TP the house! However, when my kids are older we may have some mischievous fun with the elves. :)

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Permalink Reply by Shawn Spivey on December 1, 2012 at 2:05pm

I was soooo tempted to pick up the elf and book set while Black Friday shopping. I had it in my hand for $24.99 when it's typically $29.99 at Target. Considering I'm on a much stricter (single-mom) budget, I didn't grab it. I'm hoping to find a better price between now and Christmas or maybe after Christmas for next year.

In the mean time, I love looking at ideas from all over the net. If you find good ideas, post them to share.

Elf on the Shelf Ideas

Are you doing Elf on the Shelf at your house?

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Permalink Reply by Nijuana Jones on December 3, 2012 at 9:18pm

We are starting The Elf on The Shelf tradition this year!! My sister decided to get it for my son as an early Christmas present, so we will get it tomorrow and start having fun with it. I love how creative people are with this and cannot wait to try some of them and dream up some more of my own.

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Permalink Reply by Bryssy on December 4, 2012 at 6:53am

Our elf moves around but he has to learn the bible verse of the day to take back (we memorize Luke 2: 1-20 during advent - the Christmas story). If he doesn't move, it means the kids didn't teach him the verse well enough. We don't do the whole 'the elf is watching you' thing - or even that Santa is watching. We just have fun with it and nothing crazy with the setting up of the elf. Just hiding him somewhere new.

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Permalink Reply by Shawn Spivey on December 6, 2012 at 9:41am

Some of these are repeats but number 19 is so good I had to add it. Too funny!

Number 4 would have my kids in stitches. I had to lol at that thought.

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Permalink Reply by Nijuana Jones on December 6, 2012 at 12:24pm

Thanks for the link Shawn, my husband and I are having so much fun with this!! Our 5 year old son just giggles and giggles everytime he looks at our elf. We haven't come up with a name yet, but when we do, we will have the elf write Sawyer a note one night and sign it with his name.