This fun family tradition gives literal meaning to "Santa's elves are watching!" (Who doesn't remember being told this at least once during the holidays as a kid?)
As a Parent, it is your job to move your family's Elf around the house. Which can often mean, you are laying in bed, almost asleep and bam! you remember you forgot to move the Elf! Now you are scrambling to think of a clever place to put your Elf, when really all you want is to be back in your comfy bed.
Here are some tips to help keep your Elf on the move and eliminate those last minute scrambles:
Put a reminder in your phone's calendar. This only takes a minute - set it for Dec 1- Dec 25 for a time after the kids are in bed.
Make a Plan. Take a moment to plan out your Elf's locations for each day. You can take it one step further and put the plan in your phone's calendar.
Gather the Props. Some of the ideas require props (toys, toilet paper, marshmallows, etc.). Get an empty sack or basket and place the props altogether (it may not be possible to do this if a prop is one of your child's favorite toys, but you get the idea). Make a list of the ones you don't have on hand and pick them all up at the store at the same time. Keep the props hidden in your closet.
Ideas to Help with Planning. There are lots and lots of ideas online for what to do with your Elf, here are a few we found (with pictures) to help you get started:
- 25+ Ideas from Elf on the Shelf.com
- 43 Ideas from Buzz Feed
- 50 Ideas from IHeartNapTime
- Calendar from AGrandeLife
- Calendar from ALittleMooreBlog
- Calendar from MomEndeavors
