Never done Elf on the Shelf, I don’t get that at all, but we have done a Christmas Eve hamper since ds1 was small, he’s 25 now, so it’s an older established tradition in our house with all our 5 dc. It’s up to each family what they like to do, and what tradition they want to make, no one has to do it or feel they have to do it.
My parents died very young, I have no family now and DH only has his dm, so our dcs aren’t lavished with gifts from others. We’re not excessive generally with Christmas so they don’t have expectations of multiple gifts and huge amounts spent.
Even if they had more, the Christmas Eve box doesn’t have to be about getting additional gifts to add to the ridiculous excess of it all. For us and I think most families, it’s pretty low key, it’s definitely about fun and tradition for us and easily comes within the remit of a few special Christmas extras bits most people ordinarily buy, I don’t see it as particularly extravagant.
We don’t have a big lead up to Christmas, and for us and families who do it it’s just a lovely way to make the evening special and properly begin festivities. Everyone has continued to always be here on Christmas Eve and we have dd3 who’s 13, so we’ve carried on with it, it’s our tradition. None of us wants to stop, we all love it. After dinner when we all go to sit down, the ‘elves’ leave it at the door.
I don’t feel any pressure or encouragement to do it and I don’t feel it’s consumerist. I would essentially save buying new pyjamas they needed each year until then, so for those that say they if needed they would just buy them anyway, honestly what difference does it make? I would always buy warm and cosy ‘winter’ pyjamas but not specifically Christmas themed.
Some people who don’t get it might spend loads more on e.g. alcohol than I do or a new Christmas outfit or getting their hair and nails done, or new decorations, or cleaning their house from top to bottom ahead of Christmas, or buying teacher or work colleagues gifts.
I don’t buy the older ones pyjamas to put in now, I’ll put in e.g., cute bed socks instead, plus a new family game to play in the evening, (eg Game Off) a few Christmassy drinks, special flavours of hot chocolate and marshmallows, candy canes, gingerbread and other Christmassy type biscuits, e.g., lebkuchen, and chocs, e.g., the M&S chocolates that spell Merry Christmas.
It’s just bloody fun and nice and special for us. If you choose not to, fine for you, but why anyone would want to judge or criticise our tradition is beyond me.