It’s the most wonderful time of the year— elf season! Our family elf, Silly, just completed his first long flight from the North Pole (aka the box in the garage) to our shelf.
I know this is an unpopular opinion, but I love the Elf on the Shelf. I love watching my kids’ excitement as they search for him every morning. But in a Pinterest world full of elf antics parents feel compelled to emulate, this little tradition has become, as Charlie Brown would say, commercialized.
According to “The Elf on the Shelf: A Christmas Tradition,” your kids’ elf “can hide on a plant, a shelf, or a frame.” The book doesn’t suggest that parents do anything crazy with their elf, I blame Pinterest for that.
I think I love the elf on the shelf so much because since we first named our elf eight years ago, we’ve kept it simple. Each night, my husband and I take turns moving the elf to a different room around our house.
That’s it.
We just put him in a different spot. Sometimes, we try to be funny and hang him upside down or perched in an interesting place like the bathroom. But it doesn’t take us much time.
Our elf doesn’t poop chocolate chips, saran wrap the toilet seat, kidnap the Barbie dolls, or wear tiny elf costumes.
Our kids don’t even know they are missing out on all the hoopla because we’ve never done those things. They are just glad we have an elf because they adore him.
If you love having your elf participate in crazy elf antics, then by all means, keep it up! I know some people have fun planning their elf’s tomfoolery.
Other parents are stressed out by the elf pressure, trying to top their elf’s crazy adventures night after night, year after year. I know other parents never even bought an elf on the shelf because they didn’t want to deal with it all.
If you are avoiding starting the elf on the shelf tradition because you’re worried that it would be too much work, don’t stress about it. It doesn’t have to be hours of prep each night. Just read the book to your kids and then move that little elf butt. That’s all you need to do.
