Why our Elf is on Sabbatical

Before “Elf on a Shelf” was a thing, my mom had these adorable little elves that sat around on the tree and mantle. They held their knees and grinned their elfish grins at us. Each year, we had fun posing them in different locations and thought they were just cute. When the whole “Elf on a Shelf” phenomenon broke out, I was perplexed. I’d had my little friend for a long, long time. Why was he all of a sudden so popular? And why was he taking on an entirely new clandestine role?

I did a little research and found that the little elves I was used to seeing were very popular in the 1960s and are called Kneehugger Elves. Makes sense that my mom and dad would have several around the house. It wasn’t until 2004 that this new “tradition” began.

But, because I allowed myself to be sucked in to the everyone-else-is-doing-it Pinterest pull, I thought it’d be fun to let our elf come to life. Miss Sassy Pants named him Elfie, and the first year Aaron and I had a great time figuring out where he could be each night. I never did anything quite as brilliant as putting him in a bath with Barbie or having him draw things on mirrors and picture frames (those are actually really cute ideas), but he moved around. He spent several nights hanging from the fan cord. He enjoyed sitting on wreaths. He even managed to land on the top of the tree.

The next year, Aaron and I tried — but I was pregnant and forgetful. Several mornings, we’d wake up and realize that Elfie had never moved. Miss Sassy Pants is smart enough to figure it out, we thought, so we rushed to move him to a new location.

The next year, with a brand new baby in the house, it was just as bad.

And the next year? Well, I forgot I’d shoved him in my lingerie drawer after we’d cleaned up Christmas — so he got a late start to the spying.

Each year, my efforts with Elfie became weaker and weaker. So this year, he’s on sabbatical.

 

Miss Sassy Pants is old enough for me to just tell her that he’s tired (she has decided he’s sitting on the tree and texting Santa — we’ll go with that), and the boys (who are currently 3.5 and 19 months) have no clue that this cute elf on the tree is supposed to move.

And I’m ok with that. With BabyGirl on the way, the three jobs that I work from home, plus trying to keep a level of sanity, I’m fine with Elfie staying still this year.

We all need to stay still sometimes, right?

But beyond the need for me to have a break, Elfie, in my opinion, wasn’t really necessary. Fun? Yes. An integral part of the Christmas season? No.

Many argue that pushing Santa is also not an integral part of the Christmas season — but at least he’s steeped in tradition. A long one — based on a legendary man who helped the sick and the poor. So, we’ll keep him around. As Aaron puts it, Santa is more the “spirit of Christmas” and giving. I like that.

But the ultimate and most important part of Christmas – the birth of Jesus and arrival of our Savior – continues to be pushed under the rug. This makes me sad. So this year, Elfie is starting his sabbatical, and we’re going to do a little more with our new nativity scene (we bought a plastic one so another one of our Wise Men doesn’t lose his head – that’s another story).

I want my children to enjoy Christmas and all the fun that surrounds it, but I also want there to be no question about the true purpose of this time of year — or rather, this particular holiday. With everything that is becoming increasingly popular due to social media outlets — and the fact that many of us feel guilty if we don’t participate for our children (yes, I’m someone who allowed the St. Patrick’s Day Naughty Elf to come in our house for a couple of years) — it’s easy to lose sight of why my family chooses to celebrate this amazingly beautiful season. And I’m going to try my hardest to bring us back to the real reason.

Do you do Elf on a Shelf? Why or why not?

 

Tags: christmas, elfontheshelf, sabbatical