This is the sign that greeted us as we arrived to pick out our Christmas tree this past Sunday.  We had to wait until Kelsey was back in the fold so all of us could go out together and bring home the chosen one. The Christmas tree blog too will have to wait, for it sits in it’s stand with the lights and ribbon on but no other adornments. Midterms are this week and again by orders of the kids, no ornaments can be hung unless they are all involved. So on that note…we shifted gears and had Elf Day today. 

No, we are not doing what you are thinking. Since Cameron is 12, he is past the point of falling hook, line and sinker for Elf on the Shelf. I do believe from what I have seen on Facebook that Mr. Elf is going strong, and some parts of me wish that my crew were young enough to follow his every move…other parts are very thankful that I do not have to remember to change his position every night and think up creative spots in which he would appear. Trust me, after being the Tooth Fairy, the Easter Bunny and Santa for the last 22 years, poor Cameron (the youngest)  heard some bizarre excuses for waking up in the am to find that the tooth fairy had forgotten about his newly lost tooth…yet again. Add it up, five kids times approximately 20 teeth lost a piece equals one hundred nights of remembering, finding the dollar, spraying it with hairspray so the “fairy dust” would stick and then sneaking into the room to find the itty bitty tooth in the dark, under their pillow without waking them. Another one of those thankless jobs we as parents do, for we give all the credit to someone else! When they are old enough to realize that they have been mislead, they are usually too cool for school and would never think of thanking you for those many dollars nor the lost sleep. It will all come back to them when they have kids.  Did you know that the tooth fairy flies by the seat of her pants? That she cannot fly on windy nights, nor nights with snow, rain or the lack of moonlight?  She is scared of cats, dogs and mice. She also frequently runs out of fairy dust and she cannot possibly fly without it. If you need excuses as to why she did not come at your house…call me. 

Being a stationery lover and and a lover of writing notes, I WOULD fall for this beautiful little book of letters that I found and ordered for the Barn Sale. 

It will take you through three years

of your child communicating with his/her own family elf…aka…you. There are some wonderful activities in the book and I love all of Sugar Boo Designs stationery products. 

Love this large notebook pad of paper with beautiful thoughts printed on the bottom. We also have 100 Thoughts for my Child pads as well. 

I am a sucker for handwritten calendars, lists, notebooks and journals and especially ones with a vintage feel! Sorry to have digressed…where was I? Oh yes, Elf Day. Since I just announced that we do not do Elf on a Shelf or write notes back and forth to our family elf, what activity do we do that brings elves into our house that is appropriate for the age of our kids?

We pick names out of a hat and you are an elf for the person that you pick. You secretly do nice things for that person and try to not let them know who is their elf. The kids have thought up all sorts of things, from making the bed to leaving candy on that same bed to doing the chore of their selected person. It is a simple activity but adds a little Christmas joy to each day.