Elf on the shelf

We’ve had our elf since 2012, and the kids still get excited for his return. When he first arrived at our house, the kids were three years old. When I asked what they wanted to name him, they went with the obvious and decided to name him Red.

His return date varies but it’s usually some time after December 1st. 25 days (or less) of Red is all the excitement we can handle. By the way, we know it’s him when he returns because a few years ago, Red wanted to be like Santa and glued a cotton ball to his cap. A little puff of cotton still remains on his cap!

Red brings the kids a few things and is up to some silly antics, but there’s no bad behavior from Red.

Here’s what Red as been up to….

The first morning that Red arrives, he brings a little note to mark his return. I gave the kids the chocolate advent calendars from Trader Joe’s.

The second morning, Red brought wish lists for the kids. It’s always fun to see what they write down for “want, need, wear, read.” Red takes those lists back to the North Pole, but the kids know the lists help family members get ideas for what they’d like as well.

Red also wrapped himself as a Hershey’s Kiss, celebrated Taco Tuesday, hung upside down by the tree, and ate a few of Homer’s Christmas treats!

Red also made a heart out of candy canes, took a bath in marshmallows, and hung an ornament on one of our Christmas tree decorations.

Yesterday morning, Red took a selfie while sitting on our mantle! Hadley laughed when she saw him, and said, “He does that every year!” Hayden then said, “HOW does he do that?!”

This memory popped up on my Facebook memories, and it’s the sweetest. There were even two videos, one of each kid, talking to Red about what they’d like for him to tell Santa (Ho Ho) what they wanted for Christmas.