AIBU to have never heard of Elf on a Shelf before?

[whatsthatcomingoverthehill]

I'm 30-something and this is the first Christmas I can remember where people are going on about some bloody elf. Suddenly seems all over facebook, people complaining about not being able to get one etc etc. Where has this come from? I'm guessing some kind of american import. And what even is it?

Oddboots Thanks for sharing that - I know exactly the kind of robin you mean, my mum had those with the wire on their feet.

We did a homemade elf with our children last year. We made the elf from an old tradional wooden doll thing that I picked up in a charity shop. We really did it because as our children were a bit older we thought it might be the last year that they still believed, and we thought it might be a fun magical thing to do.

Because the children were older, we changed the story a bit to make it more believable. They never saw the elf, but he blogged, with photos each morning, and sometimes left a gift or a mess! They did love it, especially my eldest who was 8 at the time, who really bought into the magic of it all.

We detailed all his adventures on the blog below:

gingerbreadglittertoes.blogspot.co.uk/

It was really hard work to keep thinking up new ideas, but it was quite fun for DH and I to work on a silly project together.

It was a one off, and we won't be repeating it though. I think done every year it would lose it's magic.

I've kept the elf dolly, and I am intending to print off the blog, and pass it on to our children when they have children of their own.

Now this is a more creative use of the Elf!

Thank goodness we are well into teenager years, and i can happily get on with our 'normal' Christmas.

However, where do you find the official elves for sale for an eye wateringly £25?? As opposed to the unofficial ones who seem to do the job just as well.

You horrible lot!!, picking on a little elf!!!.

I have only noticed the 'Elf on the Shelf' this year, he's so cute!!, what's not to like?. Think it's an American thing that's come over here!.

Thanks America!

I heard that Barbie had to take a restraining order out against him.

We have an elf. He just does little things eg made christmas cookies one night, another night he put wrapping paper over the door. Nothing too taxing and the dc, especially dd, loves it.

Ours isn't a creepy snitching proper elf of shelf though