Elle vs. Elf a.k.a. Jeff!!!

So here is the issue, I like the Elf on the shelf thing, so much in fact that we do have one. His name is Jeff and he has played numerous tricks upon my children for a few years now which this mama has enjoyed immensely. The dilemma is that  Zachary will be 12 this Christmas and Jay will be 11 shortly after. Now Zachary at the rip old age of 3 told me that he knew Santa wasn't real because there was no way a big fat man in a red suit could make it around the whole world in one night and leave all those kids presents. ~ Don't you hate when the smart ones mess up your fun? However because he is a good brother (and I threatened to give him socks and underwear every year for the rest of his life) he promised not to spoil Santa for his brother EVER!!! A promise I am happy to report he actually kept all these years. Sadly just after Christmas 2 years ago Jay looked at me and said mom I know you are Santa and always have been. I knew at Christmas, but I didn't want to hurt your feelings so I just played along. Next year you don't have to sneak around trying to wrap our presents. And by golly I sure didn't sneak around in fact I made him go shopping with me and help me pick out stuff and then he had to wait to open it at Christmas (sucks when you let mom know you know how it works)

Ok back to the Jeff issue. I am the kind of mom that loves the idea of getting to mess with my kids some. Nothing terrible that would hurt them in any way mind you, just a little payback for all the back talk and smart ass~ isum that comes with them nearing the teenage years. Jeff has taken their toy cars and made a parade out of them, he has piled up in a shoe box bed with all of Zach's beanie babies. (and if you know Zach that is a terrible thing for him to wake up to. Don't be touching those beanies) Jeff made a snow angel, out of flour, in the middle of the living room floor one night to surprise the kids, and the best part was the dog walked through it at some point and left tracks to their room lol, he has left them messages on the mirror in their bathroom and even got a girl friend at one point, but the best trick he has pulled in my opinion is the night he painted noses red while the kids were asleep :) I know some people think he looks scary or something, but I really think he is kinda cute.

 

So I have started pinning ideas for this years tricks on my pintrest boards. I am wondering if I should even bother honestly however. The kids know about Santa, they know the silly little Elf does not do the tricks and it's just mom having fun with them, they know it's all just a game and I am wondering if they are finally just to old to play with me anymore? The reason this is on my mind is because Jeff makes his grand entrance the night after Thanksgiving around here usually with a pretty good bang! I think that it is possible that I have a personal attachment to that silly little doll and that is part of the reason I want to keep getting him out year after year. For those who don't know my dad's name is also Jeff and when we got the Elf on the shelf he came with a book explaining all about him and how my children had to name him. Zach of course was  in the stage where he wanted to name everything Derf. which just happens to be Fred backwards. Luckily for the rest of us he had just gotten a new toy and named it Derf so the Elf got away without that name being stuck to him forever. The boys went back and forth about what they would name their new friend and suddenly out of the blue one of them (I think maybe Jay) said Hey lets just name him Jeff, to which the other agreed and it stuck. I wanted to cry when they came to an agreement so quickly that our Elf was Jeff. Neither of them had  a clue that is my dad's name they think his name is Pops. So to me it was a special connection to my dad and my children that the Elf, named after my dad, would play tricks on my children the way I am sure he would play with and tease them if he lived anywhere near us and does when we have a visit. I guess I just don't want to put Jeff in the box to leave him there forever so I guess my children will have to deal with our Elf, Jeff playing with them until they move out of the house and go to college. :) and then they might want to warn their own children about Jeff because when I become a Grandma I am going to get Jeff out and let him mess with them too LOL because I think it's good to have family traditions that everyone can look forward to, and look back on later as well.

Speaking of traditions looks like we are going to be starting a new one in our house. Zach and I  were at the store last night and ran across a Christmas ornament that we had to take a better look at. It's a shinny, green, glittered pickle! Now if you are like me you are asking yourself who in the world would hang a pickle on their tree???? But luckily there was a story that went along with it explaining what the pickle deal is. The story goes on Christmas eve after all the kids have gone to bed the parents are supposed to hide the pickle on the tree somewhere, and the next morning when the kids get up they are supposed to look for it and the one who finds it gets a special prize. (Probably money around here) And when we checked out with our new pickle ornament the woman behind the register said that her Grandmother was Jewish and this was a tradition that they had started and passed along.(Just a note the package says it's a German thing so IDK for sure, but it doesn't really matter to me either way.)  So not only are we going to get a new pickle and a prize we are going to be keeping up a tradition from a long time ago as well. I kind of like that idea too.