Elf-on-a-Shelf

Here’s the product description as found on Amazon.com “Remember this little elf? According to tradition, families would put an elf out to watch the children to determine who's been naughty or nice. Comes with a full-color storybook and a posable elf.”

Let’s get to the point here. This “toy” is a very, very bad idea. We tell our kids that Santa knows if they’ve bad or good. However, this “toy” takes it to a whole new level. Sure, Santa knows if you’ve been bad or good because he’s got a creepy-looking, spying, no-good, elf deployed at your house and every night this elf flies back to the North Pole to rat you out to Santa.

Don’t kids go through enough grief where they shouldn’t be exposed to this behavior modification tool?
1. A big, bearded man that comes down the chimney (he had magical powers to come in our front door since we didn’t have a fireplace).
2. Sitting on #1’s lap
3. Flying reindeer
4. The failure of the auto bridge loans that have mommy and daddy stressed

And this is just at Christmas. At Easter they have to think about a giant rabbit in their house, a cruxifiction and a resurrection. Believe me, I am the woman I am today due to the huge amount of fear that I possessed. Imagine throwing this elf into the mix! I would have been a six-year old with major anxiety issues. Waking up to him posed in different ways, in different locations throughout the house. No thanks!

Let’s read and respond to some of the buyer’s comments that I found on Amazon.com

First, the positive:
#1 - My kids just received this Thanksgiving day as a gift and I am now ordering them for every child I know. It is such a cute idea. Santa sends the elf to watch the children and then the elf reports to Santa every night and comes back to a different spot in the house. My kids wake up with a running start to see who can find the elf first. The kids must name the elf and they really enjoyed that as well. It is such a nice tradition to help make the Christmas Season even more fun and special. I know it will be with our family for a very long time.

KAM’s Response: Sure mom. All of the other kids you are buying this for are just going to be thrilled…for about 3 seconds! You’re doing such a wonderful job of teaching your kids the very responsible practice/act of tattling. Plus, you have to know deep down that the name your kids have given this elf the name Lucifer and they run to find him every morning out of complete and utter fear. Just remember one more thing, Mom…these kids of yours will remember this “toy” when its time to decide your fate…nursing home or their spare bedroom. Continue to torture them in this way and I’ll be putting my money on the nursing home.

#2 - We just received this as a gift. It is perfect for my 3 year old who is having constant struggles with being a good little boy as he grows more independent. We've named our elf and everyday we remind him that his elf is watching him and he instantly stops the negative behavior. He's even told his wish list for Santa to his elf. It's been a great motivational tool for improving his behavior when other techniques have failed. Brilliant idea!!

KAM’s Response: You can tell this is written by a mom that cannot come to terms with the idea that she is raising a complete and utter brat. Your kid is struggling with being a good boy as he grows independent? That’s snobby code for - my kid misbehaves. I’m guessing that you have absolutely no control over this kid and have reached the last straw in getting him to behave. Since you can’t cop to being a poor parent, you are using this “toy” to punish your kid…all the while trying to sell it as a learning tool. Considering the psycho-babble this mom is using in her testimonial, imagine how she speaks to her kid. Poor kid! We’ll see you in Juvenile Court in about 10 years.


Finally, the negative:
#1 - We read the story and showed him the elf doll last night. I have a 4 1/2 year old son and an almost 2 year old daughter. Half way through the story, he started getting really worried about this elf coming to life in his house and running/flying all over the place. We ended up telling him it was just make believe and Mom & Dad move the elf. That made him feel better. He really liked looking for his elf (named Eeek, very fitting) this morning though. We just had to come clean about the story.

KAM’s Response: Come on. I know you spent $24.95 on this thing, but now that your kids know that this is a total sham, why even go through the motions?

#2 - The whole Santa/God thing is traumatic enough without having this evil little little spy in the house as well. My brother and I were harassed by this thing as children, we would never have it in the house now. Think about this. It's fun for adults, it's not really that fun for kids. Leave the kids alone.

KAM’s Response: I couldn’t agree more.

Thanks for the link KP & Lu.