The Elf on the Shelf leads to the kids in their place

Apparently Santa can’t do his job alone anymore, so he sent in reinforcements.

My son has been waiting with anticipation for an elf to arrive in his classroom. The elf didn’t make an appearance until everyone in the class was on their best behavior.

When Kenna the Elf finally did appear, my son couldn’t contain his excitement, “Mom! Mom! The elf came today! Only the teacher can touch her and she will tell Santa if we aren’t being good! (pause) Why don’t we have an elf at home?”

Well, because Mommy is too lazy to add one more job to her holiday list. I can hardly keep track of where my kids are, let alone remember where the Elf is hiding.

“We don’t need an elf,” I said. “Santa sends reindeer spies, too. Remember the deer we saw in the backyard and when we were driving? Yeah. They were totally checking up on you.”

I watched this sink in.

“Ooohhhh …” he said.

The Elf on the Shelf is a book that comes with an elf doll. I haven’t read the book, but from what I gather the elf relocates sometime during the night.

Kids — and parents — are having a lot of fun with this. I feel kind of like the bad nonparticipant parent, but, to be honest, the elf is a little creepy.

Perhaps not satisfied that the reindeer spies were doing their jobs accurately, my son decided he would make an elf for our house.

He fashioned an elf out of a paper towel and used red marker to “dress” it up. “Snowflake” is now perched atop our fridge (suspended from the cabinet handles) keeping a watchful, albeit crooked, eye on our family.

“I guess I will have to wake up in the middle of the night to move Snowflake since he isn’t a ‘real’ Elf on the Shelf,” my son informed me.

Just what we need for Christmas, a 7-year-old in a body cast because he was climbing the fridge to relocate Snowflake.

“I think Snowflake is in a pretty good place. He will hear you if you aren’t behaving.”

And even though my son says Snowflake isn’t a “real” elf, he still acts as if he is. Not only is Mr. Trouble minding his own P’s-and-Q’s, he’s also encouraging his 3-year-old sister to “be nice because the elf is watching.”

Am I OK with random deer and a rinse-and-reuse elf inspiring positive behavior in my kids for a few weeks?

For now, yes … . It’s just too early to start talking about the Cupid on the Couch.

Have a Merry Christmas!