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Lindsay Metcalf
on Jun 19 2013 - 06:00 AM
My top five most important moments of the summer so far
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mara williams
on Jun 18 2013 - 06:00 AM
Hey, manchild, mama says: clean your room, wash the dishes, don't drink and drive.
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Emily Parnell
on Jun 16 2013 - 06:00 AM
Eating fresh, local produce is good for body and soul
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Jim Cosgrove
on Jun 13 2013 - 06:00 AM
I just want to buy some pants. Please, turn down the music.
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- kim nakahodo - Profile | Pictures | Blog
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‘Ok, what the heck is Elf on a Shelf,’ I thought to myself two years ago. That thing looks like something I would find in my grandparent’s attic while looking for old photos. It has a creepy, thrift store quality about it… like an old doll from a horror movie.I was at a local Hallmark store looking for a birthday card for my sister. I picked up the box and turned it over to look at the price. You have to be kidding me. Seriously? Thirty bucks for a book and a scary-looking doll made out of glued felt? Why didn’t I think of that?!?!?Last year, I started seeing those elves pop up all over my Facebook thread. I investigated the premise of the well-marketed doll. So, what people are really buying is a new ‘tradition’ in the family…. Yea right! What it sounds like to me is people are buying a visual reminder of Santa watching!! Hummm… a way to guarantee your kids are good at home the entire month of December.This is the REAL way you sell millions of creepy felt dolls for thirty bucks a pop. Banking on childhood fear.So this year I bought one of those stupid, creepy Elf on a Shelf dolls. I at least had a coupon for the thing so I didn’t feel SOOOO ripped off. I haven’t ‘brought him out’ yet… DH and I have been so busy with work that we haven’t been home together in the last week. I plan to have him show up after I finish getting the Christmas tree up and decorated. At the rate that is going, should be sometime in March.It’s time for my annual anger session at half of the lights I JUST bought last year not working this year. That would be my expensive ‘tradition’ – repurchasing Christmas lights over and over again. Maybe I should be thankful that the Elf on a Shelf was an expensive one-time purchase.When I bring out my soon-to-be named Elf, I will be sure to annoy all of my Facebook friends with how clever I can be moving him around. It’s only December 3 and I am already sick of seeing everyone else’s elf antics.Am I a Grinch or does anyone else feel this way? Dragged into a ‘tradition’ you could have lived without?**Editor's Note** Wow, after re-reading this, I can tell that I wrote it right after wrestling with a Christmas tree by myself for 2 hours, then dealing with burned out Christmas lights for another 2 hours while "spiderman" tried to help. I really am not this grumpy most of the time. I do plan on making that elf work for me thought... heheheheh..... he's watching you smash off of your toys Niko!!! He's going to tell Santa not to bring you any new toys if that's the way you are going to treat them!! :)
We bought the elf this year . . . but are strongly considering returning it since we haven't taken it out of the box yet. Our kids are pretty good so I am not sure that I need to try and convince them some creepy doll is watching their every move.This is our 3rd year with Happy, our elf. I didn't feel any pressure to get him; I just thought it would be fun. It certainly helps with my daughter's behavior, and she remembers every morning to look where Happy is hiding. He came Friday morning and will leave after Christmas Eve. The pressure for me is finding new places for him to be every morning when the kids wake up. Sometimes he's in their room, the kitchen, the dining room. Our tree isn't up yet, so that's always another fun place.I didn't know what the Elf was until I read your blog & the posted comments. Too bad he won't work on teenagers (especially in the car)!This is our 2nd year to have "Fred" our Elf... Fred isn't that let's say "exciting", or mischievious"... I mean seriously have you seen what some people on FB or Pinterest do with their Elf... TP their whole Christmas Tree, draw faces on all the pictures on the walls with dry erase markers... I do NOT have the time to do all that as the clean up would take forever.... My DS enjoys our Elf on the Shelf, but I'm not going to be a parent that goes CRAZY in creative ways with our Elf...
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