Elf on the Shelf is one of the coolest things you can do with your kids around the holidays. I had no idea about this little adventure until Audrey decided to call me up at work the other day to tell me about Sammy, the elf, and how he watches over her every day and flies back to the North Pole every night and shows up again in a different place in our house on each subsequent visit and, more important, you CAN'T touch him or he WON'T come back. She was so excited to tell me all this that she was out of breath by the end.
My wife, Suzanne, came up with the idea. She can be the most creative person, and I haven't seen Audrey so excited about something in awhile. This tops Santa Claus by far. Audrey woke up this morning and the first thing she wanted to do was go find out where Sammy showed up next.
If you're confused, here's what the book, which comes with the elf, says:
Have you ever wondered how Santa could know if you're naughty or nice each year as you grow? For hundreds of years it's been a big secret. It now can be shared if you promise to keep it.
At holiday time Santa sends me to you. I watch and report on all that you do. My job's an assignment from Santa himself. I am his helper, a friendly scout elf.
The first time I come to the place you call home you quickly must give me a name of my own.
Once you are finished my mission can start. What will you call me = Markle or Zart? Will it be Foddle, Criddle, or Clyde? Fisbee's cute, too, but you must decide.
Each night while you're sleeping to Santa I'll fly to the North Pole right through the dark sky. Of course Christmas magic helps me to be quick. I laugh with my friends and report to Saint Nick.
The book then has some more verbiage, and then this:
I'll be back at your home before you awake, and then you must find the new spot I will take. You'll jump out of bed and come running to see: who'll be the first to spy little old me?
Maybe the kitchen, the bathroom, or den is where you will find me, your special elf friend. I can hide on a plant, a shelf, or a frame. Where will I be? Let's make it a game.
There's only one rule that you have to follow so I will come back and be here tomorrow:
Please do not touch me. My magic might go, and Santa won't hear all I've seen or I know.
There's a bit more to the book but you get this gist. Audrey is captivated. Tonight, while she was upstairs getting ready for bed, I took Sammy down from his perch (see picture below) and hid him, and then went upstairs to exclaim that Sammy was gone! Audrey looked at me incredulously. "He is?" she said. I told her we had to go downstairs immediately to take a look. She agreed and sprinted out of the bathroom.
Sure enough, Sammy had disappeared from the light fixture above our kitchen table. "He must have flown back to the North Pole while I was putting Grace to bed," I told Audrey. She nodded thoughtfully. But then Suzanne looked at me and suggested, "But Sammy is supposed to fly back to the North Pole AFTER EVERYONE HAS GONE TO BED, right?"
I can take a hint. But, since I had no choice but to roll with it, I said, "Well, tonight he must have been in a hurry because he left early. He'll be back before we wake up tomorrow, though."
We all agreed.
Here is where Sammy showed up on his first arrival. Consistent with the holiday theme, he settled in on our mantle amidst our Department 56 Christmas in the City display we put up each year.
As you saw earlier, Sammy next planted himself on the light fixture above our kitchen table. Where will he be this coming morning? Well, he seems to have found his way to the star on top of our Christmas tree. And his smiling face can't wait to greet Audrey.
I'll continue to put up posts of where Sammy shows up next.
Happy holidays.
