To have mega mum guilt

I am not doing it. We have plenty of traditions and Christmas fun without needing to add an elf. Definitely not something to feel guilty about!

Aw I have to say that my kids absolutely love their elves and get so excited every day when they see their antics . Even on Christmas Day they are more concerned about whether the elves are gone back rather than their presents. It's a little bit of fun in this often grim world.

I think it's creepy.

This thread 😂 classic Mumsnet one upmanship on not enjoying things that many, many people enjoy

Anyway we do the elf. It doesn't watch and report back to Santa but it moves every day and sometimes does silly things. It also brings ideas to do things for the food bank etc.
We tell our children that parents can tell Santa they would like to have an elf but that he decides if you get one. So some families don't have one because they didn't ask for one or Santa decided not to send one.

Ignore it - some people don’t have much going on in their lives and can waste time on stupid boring things

The mistake you have made is looking at that BS on social media, not not doing elf on the shelf. Spend time with your children instead of fucking about with a plastic elf.

It's utter consumerist nonsense and very creepy. Kids don't need to be brainwashed into thinking some weird supernatural being is spying on them.

I've only done it one year (last year) and very half heartedly. This year my DS7 told me he didn't want the elf coming to visit as they are too naughty and was very insistent about it. Result!

After all this time I still don't know what the point of it is 😆

We have advent calendars (not even chocolate ones, just classic paper ones) and that's all. I don't feel an ounce of guilt 😉

My “friend” felt bad for us not having one, and made a big hoopla on delivering one on Xmas eve. Thankfully I saw it on the porch before the kids, he’s still in his box shoved at the back of the linen cupboard.

We have an elf, been doing various tricks for years and not once taken photos and put it on the socials for likes or to ‘show off’
I do it because my children love it and talk about the elf coming back every December.
No regrets here.
It’s OK to do it, It’s OK not to do it, just stop comparing yourself to others.

There is no need to elf bash those of us who do enjoy it. Each to their own

I see it as the surest way to kill Christmas magic for Dc before time.

The main reason children believe in Father Christmas is because they can’t fathom their parents would “ pretend.” But what child is going to believe Fathef Christmas is real after they have seen their parents pretending this stupid inanimate plastic thing that is creepily out of proportion is alive..

Much MUCH more fun to have elves sneaking about who never get spotted.

I said no till dd came home dec 1st in reception so she's 4 and asked why she didn't have an elf as all her school friends did. And so did the classroom

Luckily I had an elf and I said oh but you did - she arrived today when you were at school

She's a hiding elf

She hides daily and you have to find her

The smile on mini blondes face was worth it

But yes our elf only hides

I don't have time to organise or think and change tricks - I work nights

So she hides and dd finds her daily happy

Everyone wins

We tried Elf on the Shelf when ds was little but only managed 2 days. We were all bored.

We do it as its the talk of the playground. Kids love it.
I don't post on Social media. I do it because we enjoy it not to show off

It's not too late if you want to do it but it's also not a big deal if you don't.

You can still do it, like NOW. Not for the show off, just for fun. Start with something simple like a dusting of flour (which you probably have in the pantry anyway) and some “footprints”.

I didn't do it at all and never regretted it. Then my eldest asked to do it for her younger sister. We thought this was thoughtful and sweet. She stuck to it the first year. Second year she mostly did it. This is the third year and I can tell it is now my bloody job! Sake!

OP don’t waste energy feeling guilt about this. I never did it, and I’m so glad, because it sounds like a right pain. My kids are older teens now and they honestly don’t care that they didn’t do the elf thing.
Just do the things you like doing, make your own Christmas traditions. We always decorated the tree together, with Christmas music in the background. My eldest is at uni now but I’m under strict instructions not to do the tree till he comes home.
Another thing we did was have a picture advent calendar as well as chocolate, and try to guess what the picture would be. Far less hassle than moving a bloody elf around!

I don’t understand why people are so against it. Most children would love elf of the shelf and I think a lot of people do it now, I wouldn’t want my child to be the only one without one, especially when they will all be talking about it at school. They get so excited over it.

They don’t need to be naughty just move them around and play hide n seek.

It’s not too late to get one, have it write a letter saying sorry it’s late…

You do not have to engage with anything you do not want to.

Our elves are good craic. There is no spying or behaviour monitoring. They bring wee surprises, an advent calendar, an odd chocolate coin if anyone has been super good or done well at school. They bring wee games (print offs of xy osies, or sodoku), they scale the Christmas tree, or rearrange shoes.

Nothing dramatic, nothing bad, often rewarding for solving a wee riddle or puzzle. They do change all the bed linen to Christmas covers when children are at school beginning of December.

They ask for toys to take back to santa to go on to other children, (which is why not everything is brand new) and old or broken things to be recycled into new toys. That is a week 1 activity, they fill the baskets and get a freddo in the basket back.

You can do what you like with it, or just don't. It need not be arduous. Or it can just not happen at all. There is absolutely nothing wrong with choosing your own feel good stuff.

I like doing it (shrugs)

There’s no creepiness or watching or anything about having to be good, just silly tricks for my dd to find in the morning, it brings her happiness

Exactly. My kids would have hated this !