Christmas in full swing before December makes me Bah humbug

[Anaffaquine123]

Are my children going to miss something terribly due to never experiencing an elf on the shelf?
According to some friends, it is awful that they are missing out. All their peers have one.
However, I can just about remember to get them opening their advent calendars on the right days let alone faff about with a bloody elf.
I just don't see the need so we won't be doing it. However when I said this to another mum. The looks I got, you would think I had told the entire nursery class Santa wasn't real.
So many people falling over themselves to post pictures of their already decorated tree, wrapped presents etc. It makes me be a bit bah humbug about it all. It is only December tomorrow and I still think that is too early for Christmas trees.
Am I alone in thinking that all this makes Christmas a bit of a stressful chore and takes away from the joy of it? Or am I just a miserable git?

Different strokes for different folks. Just don't leave your shipping till Xmas eve!

The thought of Elf on the Shelf makes my skin crawl. Any of the elf's I have seen look creepy as fuck. And then theres the work involved. But whatever floats their boat.

I do LOVE Christmas lights though, and absolutely welcome them. They brighten up the dark nights and make everything look magical. My DDs are enthralled by every light we see.

Children don't like the elf.

They think it's fucking creepy.

Elf's? No, elves...

:o Joffrey

I like 'elfs'. It's probably technically correct.

I say 'mouses'. Sounds funny.

Love Christmas (in December!!). Love the lights, the festivities, the present giving etc but if one more person posts a f* elf on my timeline tonight I will scream!!! How do they all have so much time on their hands?!?! How did this become a thing?! Bah humbug...

It makes me laugh with the 'how do they have so much time on their hands' posts about an elf. We had one last year, he has 'arrived' again tonight, at the children's request as they loved it last year. Most things he does takes 5 mins at most to do, same I would say for the antics of most of the elves on my fb feed. I have no problem with anyone who doesn't want to do it, so why have a problem with someone who does?

OP I think you might be me. Over my dead body is an Elf coming into my house.

It is all USA imported, consumerist, bollocks that the herd go along with because they are too scared to say no, the FB likes might go down, they want to be the perfect parent on social media etc...

& then the trees will be down on Boxing Day because they are fed up. Boxing Day is only the 2nd day off work for the Christmas season!!! Why the Fuck are you taking the tree down on the 2nd day of the holiday??!! If you didn't put it up 4 weeks too early it wouldn't need to come down!

The world has gone mad.... Grrr...

Sorry for the rant, you have no idea how much better I feel ;) ahem...

My tree will go up at some point this week and come down in the new year. I wasn't scared to say no, my children knew nothing about the elf until I introduced him last week. I am far from the perfect parent, far from it and I would never claim to be and having an elf in no way equates to being a perfect parent.

Dusty, my post wasn't aimed at anyone in particular. It was just a rant about how things have changed over the years.

Honestly? It's been a shitty year, the amount of racism, negativity and other tripe on social media is just depressing. Other incidents reported on social media recently have been heartbreaking. I want to see happy families and elves and other shite, I am happy that people are being silly and wanting to create daft traditions with their children.

If you have put up your tree or if you have an elf, a fairy or whatever then thumbs up from me! Enjoy your crimbo [santa] [santa]

I love Christmas,I'm one of those bloody anoying people that likes buying presents,likes wrapping gifts,watches Christmas movies and listens to Christmas Carols.I'm also one of those oddities that enjoys eating brussel sprouts more than once a year.

But I don't do the Elf on the Shelf,I only heard about it last year on here and are DC were already 18,16,13,11 and 7 by then.

The Christmas tree and any decorations don't go up until 12 days before Christmas,very old fashioned tradition I know but it's the way my parents always did it and I think that's early enough.

We do have friends that stick they're Christmas tree up the day after Halloween,I think if I tried that the children would come home to find that Daddy had stuck Mummy ontop of the tree instead of the Angel

Will someone please explain what elf on the shelf involves? My youngest is almost 18 and I've not heard of it.

《Climbs back under rock》

Well, I don't put up the tree and decorations until mid December either. I don't think I could cope with them up earlier, unless it was for a special reason.

I'm not really bothered by what others do it's up to them, but I wouldn't take kindly to being expected to follow the crowd with stuff I didn't want to do.

DC will only miss out if they have no home, no food, no presents and no love. The rest is unimportant really.

actually 'no presents' isn't really missing out...

It isn't consumerist in my house! It's a mischievous little toy who gets himself into funny situations. DS hooted with laughter this morning to find him hiding inside the cereal box. It's a second's work per night to pop him somewhere and a good game for children to find him. Free fun - who's against that?

LavenderRain - there's an elf toy and a book etc but I just bought a cheap elf toy and tell the basic story - he's one of Santa's elves who comes every day to keep an eye on children and see they're behaving - he goes back to the North Pole every night and in the morning gets himself into funny places/situations. It's a good laugh and I don't play up the behaviour side of it. Simple fun, IMO.

Some peopel have the elf bring presents, do glitter footprints and all the rest - that's up to them.

I am not a fan of that irritating little elf. I love Christmas, I love the feeling of expectation and preparation - I love the kids excitement over their advent calendars. The elf is a step too far - if you can be bothered to do it (seems like a shed load of mess and hassle) - go for it. I will stick to my old fashioned paper advent calendars and tree up in mid December.

I love the build up to Christmas, but starting it too early spoils it. It drags it all out and by boxing day people are dying to take the decorations down, suffering from huge anti climax after the big build up, and often absolutely broke because of the ridiculous amount some people spend in the two months leading up to Christmas Day.

It's not bah humbug. I just yearn a bit for the days when Christmas was simpler but still very special.

I don't like the elf on the shelf thing and I can't be doing with decorations up at the start of the month, I think the toy advent calendars are over the top and I think Christmas bedding is ridiculous.

Despite the above, I love Christmas. I just find it much more enjoyable if the whole thing doesn't last six weeks.

Thanks for explaining brian not sure I would of done it when the DC were young but each to their own, it doesn't hurt anyone but I'm sure I would have forgotten to move him or something! I always used to forget the teeth fairy

How the elf a shed load of mess? I enjoy hiding him and the DC enjoy looking for him. It's like - lock the doors, turn the lights off, hide the elf...even if you forget you can always hide him sharpish when the kids are busy looking! It's less hassle than opening bloody advent calendars.

I used to enjoy Christmas when it meant skiing, (grown up) parties and a cracking New Years Eve.

Now I'm drowning in the constant disappointments of a confused, over excited 3 year old.
Today's disappointment was the advent calendar chocolate being too small. Until yesterday she didn't even know what an advent calendar was.

I said to somebody yesterday id not started shopping im sure she heard i killed somebody today her face was a picture , there was no effing elf on any shelf when mine were young its frigging creepy

Only deludedmothers could defend that elf the children are scared shitless that the fecker is stalking them