Elf on a shelf. Anyone else not doing it?

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Please tell me I'm not the only one not doing this bastard Elf on a bloody shelf?

I feel like parents around me are doing them with amazing balloons, advent calendars , cupcakes!

Each to their own but I feel so guilty for not doing it now. But I'm finding every year it's something new and to be quite frank I cannot be arsed!

Nope, although I'm Jewish and we don't make a big deal about Christmas. Never start a tradition you aren't willing to see through.

I don't do it, like you can't be arsed. I have enough to do in December.

Not doing it here. I don't want to try and think of something to do with it each day during Dec

I’m not. There’s already shit loads to do to get ready for Christmas and enough tidying up without a bloody elf making mischief all over the house! Plus think it’s so wasteful some of the things people come up with for the elf to do. Saw one the other day about an elf in a bath tub of balloons. What a waste and bad for the environment for about 2 seconds entertainment for the kids!
Don’t feel guilty.

I have never done it. Its stupid.
I already give enough time and money to Christmas without having to deal with an ASBO fucking elf!

Nope. Until today my children hadn't even heard of it.

I may have to get involved next year, but if I do we will have a cheeky hide and seek elf who hides in a different place every day for the children to find him. I don't have time for elaborate set ups!

Nope... I just can't... 😭 I take my hat off to anyone who does but I have enough trouble keeping my shit together at this time of year without adding yet another Christmas "tradition" which will ultimately raise my kids expectations higher and fall solely to me to remember to do!

Nope I have a 5 and 3 year old and have no plans to ever start. DD1s classroom had one last year and I was so relieved she didn't ask why we don't have one at home

Not only do we not do Elf in the Shelf, but I forgot to buy advent calendars.

Nope. No. No no no no no. Oh hell no.

Sod that for a game of soldiers, I am just about keeping on top of things without adding some weird competitive 'all for the gram' madness to the hell that is the run up to Christmas!!!!

How the hell do people have time for this utter shit?

Bah humbug.

Nope. It’s creepy. Something about those cold, dead eyes and the the bendiness gives me the shivers. 😂
Mine are teens and this wasn’t a ‘thing’ when they were peak Xmas age thank God.

I’m not doing it for 4 year old DD. Looks like a lot of hard work to me! I can just about get my kids dressed and out the door in the morning, let alone have to worry about setting that up.
I did relent this year and get DD an advent calendar. Not that she had any clue about them! She was just happy when I said there’s chocolate inside.

Nope! Have enough shit to remember already. Don't need to be waking up panicking in the middle of the night and then having to think of a job for a bloody toy elf to do. I'd never get back to sleep! DD is 7 and I've never done it, and she's never mentioned it.

Will never do it. I think it's weird that the elf is meant to be watching sprigs for good behaviour but then does all this naughty stuff itself. Kids don't really get irony so it sends a confusing message.

Also, they just look creepy as hell. Definitely will feature in a horror movie in the next decade.

I’m not going to for my DTs. This is their first year where they’ve really been in to Christmas. I’ve got enough going on with keeping the basics going without coming up with new and imaginative ways to entertain them with a naughty creepy elf.

@OneOfTheGrundys

Nope. It’s creepy. Something about those cold, dead eyes and the the bendiness gives me the shivers. 😂 Mine are teens and this wasn’t a ‘thing’ when they were peak Xmas age thank God.

They are SO creepy! I have to go on a social media cull every year of weirdos friends who bore everyone with daily updates of what 'Buddy the naughty elf! has been up to

@BabyRace

Nope, although I'm Jewish and we don't make a big deal about Christmas. Never start a tradition you aren't willing to see through.

There's Mensch on a Bench as well now. For Hanukkah!

Not here. I’m not sure my 6 year old would ever be convinced that creepy toy is a real elf watching her - is that what it’s meant to be??

Nope. We have a Christmas fairy who leave nice treats or asks the kids to do something but she doesn’t visit every day.

I don’t do elf on the shelf, but we do have a Tomte Elf (tradition from when we lived in Sweden). You never see the elf, but a little door appears in the skirting board on the 1st and stays there until 24th. No real mischief happens, sometimes he leaves some sweets or chocolates by his door for the kids to find, or a board game that we haven’t played in ages, but it’s not every day.
We kind of took a Swedish tradition and made it our own. He goes back up north with Julenisse on 24th and takes the Xmas lists with him and leaves new pyjamas.

I love doing Tomte elf as there is zero pressure and no daily expectation from the kids.

Christ no.

My kids don't need to be monitored, which was the original premise, and they certainly don't need destructive ideas, which is what it's morphed into

I also object to the rank commercialism - I spotted specific elf prank props on sale today

Nope, hoping ds shows no interest in the future.
We've got birthdays still, so try to put the Christmas excitement off for those.

I did it for years because dd really wanted it. I hated it and forgot til last minute every year.

Then just before last Christmas, ds (then 9) , who is the youngest, told me the elf was weird and creepy.

I have never been so happy in my life. I wouldn't read any of them the book because I hate the 'the elf will tell on you' aspect.

But honestly, don't start it if you can. Ots a pita.

I've never done it. I don't have the time or the inclination to tidy my house at the best of times, let alone deliberately trashing it to then have to clear it up again! Never seen the point.

Not doing it and never done it. Just seems a bit creepy and a total faff to me. DD doesn't know any better.