LIFE AS IS: ’Tis the season for ‘The Elf On The Shelf’

Hiding in plain sight helps an Elf on the Shelf do her job. Here she is, waiting patiently to be discovered by a child who isn’t bothering to look for her. NEDRA RHONE / NRHONE@AJC.COM

Hiding in plain sight helps an Elf on the Shelf do her job. Here she is, waiting patiently to be discovered by a child who isn’t bothering to look for her. NEDRA RHONE / NRHONE@AJC.COM

I was getting my hair done the other day and my hairdresser, Nicole, was lamenting about having to get up very early to move the “elf,” to a different place in her house because she forgot to move him the night before. “What’s that,” I asked. “You know, ‘The Elf On The Shelf’,” she replied. “I have no idea,” I answered.

She proceeds to tell me this whole story about this tradition with little kids that began in 2005. Apparently, a mother, Carol Aebersold, and her daughter, Chandra Bell, started it with a book, which has exploded into dolls, kits, accessories, pets, movies and more. The initial book comes with a Scout Elf, that is either a boy or girl. As the story goes, which, if I was a kid, I would not want that “thing,” in my house, watching my every move.

But this little green elf comes and takes over your house for the month of December and watches your children, who love this, apparently, to make sure if you are being naughty or nice. Your kids or grandkids can name them, but they can never touch them, or the elves will lose their magic. The elf comes to your home from the North Pole during the Scout Return week, usually Nov. 24 through Dec. 1, to help Santa keep tabs on the kids’ behavior on his “naughty and nice” list.

The elf sits in a certain spot during the day and returns to the North Pole at night to report to Santa. When Santa arrives on Christmas Day to deliver presents the elf then returns to the North Pole for another year. The kids take delight in naming their elves, like Buddy or Winky or Hoppity. Or if you want to stick with Christmas themes, there’s Snowy or Frosty or Snowflake. Personally, I would name my elf, “Snitch!”

The real work is on the parents, who have to move the elf every night to a new place in the house so the kids can see he or she has moved by morning. Heaven help the poor parents if the family dog gets hold of it and thinks it’s a toy. One Christmas, my daughter received an interesting gift from her mother-in-law. It was a Christmas fairy that looked a little scary.

My daughter and her husband named it, “Creepy-the-freaky fairy.” As a joke, each family member gets a turn to put “Creepy” somewhere. Sometimes, he or she is beside the bed when you wake up or by the bathroom sink. There’s the initial: “Oh my gosh!” And, everyone laughs.

Personally, I think I’ll opt for the good old fashioned tradition of leaving cookies and milk for Santa, like on the kitchen table or by the fireplace near the Christmas tree. Not to be a brown-noser or anything.

Anne Mount is an award-winning journalist, author, and screenwriter. She is a native Daytonian.

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