Elf on the Shelf Overview

Answer 1

Elf on the Shelf started as a family tradition that author Carol Aebersold invented in the 1970's. She told her children the story of "how Santa knows" which children are nice and which are naughty. A helpful elf travels from the North Pole to catch them being good (or not so good) and provides daily reports to Santa.

Soon a little elf doll appeared in the Aebersold home. He was moved every night to a different place, and the children would find him. But they were not to touch the elf, because that would destroy the magic. The game of hide-and-seek lasted each year until Christmas Day. Then the elf went back to the North Pole for a well-earned rest.

Aebersold's book The Elf's Story was published in 2005, and the family business has grown since then. Elves are adopted by families with children and each elf is given a special name. The elf can then be registered online.

Some children are overly sensitive to the idea of an elf who watches them, so parents need to consider individual traits before brining an elf into their home. Most young children do enjoy the game, and the tradition can encourage good behavior.

Ideas abound for new adventures for the elves to engage in, some of them quite mischievous. Elves can rearrange school clothes into mismatched outfits, strew toilet paper around the Christmas tree, take a ride on a toy train, or snuggle into a doll buggy. They can hide in a closet or swing from a chandelier.

Tea parties or Board Games can feature an elf as one of the participants, with dolls or stuffed animals as companions. Elves can even hide outdoors in fine weather, or take a snooze in the freezer. They can make a treat for the familyand leave behind a mess for the kids to help clean up.

Some elves love to read and write. They can be seen delving into the books on the toy shelves or perusing the newspaper. They might leave a message written in the frost on a window pane or in the freshly fallen snow. They might leave a note under a child's pillow. Elves have even been known to mail an occasional card to a favorite child.

Elves love to hide in unusual places. They can be found peeking from behind the pictures on the mantle or the broom in a closet. They might try occupying shoes or a basket of laundry. Elves can be found under tables and on top of refrigerators, perched on curtain rods or squeezed between books on a shelf.

A favorite activity of rambunctious elves is to hide things. They might take one shoe or sock. They could spirit away mom's car keys. The one rule all family members must follow is to never touch the elf. Adopt an elf and enjoy her zany antics until Christmas morning.