That time I also did a blog post about the Elf on the Shelf...

I know, I know.

The Elf on the Shelf craze is everywhere.

And.

The ANTI Elf on the Shelf craze is everywhere.

So proceed or don't, but today, I offer you...

Hate is a pretty strong word. So I don't actually hate Alfie, our elf. What I dislike veryveryveryveryveryveryveryvery much is what this whole Elf on the Shelf thing has forced me to do. 

For example. 

1. It means that I gave into peer pressure. Yep. I didn't want to be left out of the "super-mom" club. So we got an elf. I also didn't want my kid to miss out on anything that every other one of his friends gets to have. SMH. 

2. It has caused me to move at speeds I don't think any normal human should move at in the morning. This is really because we sometimes forget to move Alfie. And by we, I clearly mean Ryan, because when that happens it's his fault. So what ends up happening is one of us is the distractor and one of us is the mover. 

3. It means someone else came up with a huge marketable scam idea and is now a millionaire. Yep. What a freaking genius. And it wasn't me. Or anyone I know. And holy cow how EASY. "Hi Moms....you don't want your kids to miss out on anything amazing, right? What? You're too busy to deal with one more thing. Oh, your poor children. Call CPS right now." Basically refer back to #1 above. 

4. Those moms. (Be prepared to pee your pants laughing by clicking that link).

5. Late night panic attacks. Yep. Now you aren't just scared awake by that tiny tot staring you in the face in the middle of the night because she wanted to tell you a story. Now you also throw yourself forward because you forgot to move the elf. 

6. Elves are everywhere. Seriously. They are all over the place - at other friends' houses, at school, sitting on the stinking shelves at Target. How the heck are we supposed to capture the magic when our children see them everywhere they go? 

7. Too much variety. We need to get our stories straight here people. There needs to be some Elf on the Shelf etiquette - where is that chapter in Emily Post? 

1. No elf arrives before December 1
2. Elves only visit Dec 1 - 24
3. No elf brings gifts valued more than $3
4. Etc...

8. Buddy said it best.

It's true - the thing I look forward to the least is disappointing the kids about one more thing. I already dread the day they find out about Santa (although I'm a believer, aren't you?) but I really think Radley is going to be devastated when he finds out Alfie isn't magic. We already had a horrible run-in when Uncle Pete came over and was unaware that you are not allowed to touch Alfie. Radley about died and I had to yet again think and move quickly (which becomes more difficult the more babies you have) which ultimately lead to one more lie about a magic pillow. So now we have a small creepy elf that watches over us to tell a big giant overweight man about the kids' behavior with a magic pillow that brings back lost powers. 

BUT.

While it is easy to dislike the elf veryveryveryveryvery much. There are two reasons that still win him over for me. 

9. It's your elf. Do what you want. We've seen all the blog posts of how to make the Elf fun, or naughty, or more Jesus like.. and the great thing about that is that its YOUR elf. :) Do what you want. Don't do what you want. I think we are a middle of the road family. Sometimes Alfie is just sitting somewhere. Sometimes he brings a small surprise. Sometimes he has played with the kids' toys. He hardly ever makes a mess. We don't really use it as an incentive to be "nice"... because our kids are pretty well-behaved except for the age appropriate incident here or there. And, we should all be "nice" all the time - not just at Christmas. 

My favorite thing that we do happens on December 13. Alfie brings down his annual letter and has filled the rest of our advent calendar with slips of paper. These slips each have an activity printed that vary from shopping for dad, to driving around looking at lights to doing our annual food drive. 

And, well, the reason why we all secretly love those damn elves...

10. Our kids are worth it. 

December 1...

Just as he has done for the past few years, Alfie arrived the morning of December 1. 

And in a big way. 

Well, as big as an elf named Alfie can arrive. 

He somehow managed to wrap himself in lights and get stuck in our kitchen. To make up for it he left this note to the kids:

Happy December 1st! I'm back for the year with lots of cheer! Enjoy the lights at Santa's Wonderland tonight and tell them I sent you!

The Baileys and Munsons had the same idea, so after making our own Christmas cheer at home, away we went to Santa's Wonderland!

First stop was with the big man himself. There was of course a line, but this place has it down to an art so it moved pretty quickly. I think every year one of my favorite moments is when the kids make it to the window before entering the house and peak in on Santa. This year was extra fun because we were at the window as the Munsons were taking their pics!

5 out of 6 not crying = success!

(And we can claim Landry is laughing...but well that's not as fun!)

Then it was time to wait {again} for tickets to the hayride. (Landry, I am so sorry, I accidentally deleted the wrong picture from my camera, clearly.)

The wait wasn't so bad when you get to hang out with friends!

Eddie wanted to be in the picture with all the kids - Radley loved it. Mills notsomuch.

Then it was time to act like I am a professional photographer. Otherwise known as the time I attempted to change my ISO, shutterspeed and F stop. (All based on the numbers Josh gave me once he looked them up on an app). But, I think we did pretty good!

Although Landry's face says otherwise...the kids were in heaven. And honestly we were, too! So much fun to drive through this huge space and see the millions of lights and sets that they set up each year. 

Smart, Santa's Wonderland owners, very very smart. 

We kept hearing the giggles and laughs, the oohs and ahhs, and the MOM!! LOOOOOOOK! It's Jesus/Santa/a snowMAN!!

The hayride lasts about 25 minutes and then we had time for a few more sites - like the petting zoo. Landry basically tackled all the animals. It took Emersyn a bit longer to warm up to them, but she eventually started feeding them all by hand. 

And Radley may have wanted to take this sweet Bambi deer home.

(Me, too). 

The Baileys bid us ado so they could get sweet Kyle into bed and we waited it out for a bit of funnel cake, kettle corn and dancing. 

And of course, entertainment from this one...

Then, because Texas is Texas and of COURSE there would be a giant Texas flag lit up, we took one final pic of the kiddos. 

I am so glad that we went on this night. The weather was PERFECT - no jackets required. And the lines were relatively short. If you are planning a trip to SW let me give you some advice...

1. WEEKNIGHTS are your friend. Don't even attempt a Friday or Saturday unless everyone in your party is over the age of 12. 

2. Get there early. No matter which night you are going. The park opens at 6. Get there at 5. Seriously. The parking lot fills up quick. (Next year we are arriving at 4:30)

3. But tickets online - if you pay full price then you get to skip all the lines and head straight in. If you use groupon, living social or another discount site, you will have to wait in a line to turn in your vouchers and get tickets. So, you decide what it's worth. 

4. You can bring in your own drinks. 

5. Wear old shoes, or at least ones you don't mind getting dirty. 

6. The campfires are powerful - so be prepared to smell like campfire even if you aren't sitting next to one.

7. Bring cash - the electronic bull, kiddie train, petting zoo, miniature horses, and kettle corn stations only accept cash. 

8. Enjoy the magic of this place. It's seriously cool! Have some patience and enjoy!!! It's so worth it!

Christmas cheer...

Y'all.

I LOVE Thanksgiving.

But I'm not going to lie - it being so late totally messed with my love for all things Christmas, too. We have a hard and fast rule of no Christmas decos until after Thanksgiving. The kids were BEGGING to wear their "Christmas clothes" and pjs... so much so that I finally caved, but only if they stayed indoors. At our house. 

See, crazy?

So, as much as I love and adore Turkey Day, we were so excited to bring out the boxes and start creating cheer! Radley was basically ripping open the boxes to get those lights up. Last year we kept blowing the breaker so Ryan even had an electrician come to check the wires. Fingers crossed that this smile gets to stay on his face. 

Once the outside was done and the girls were awake from naps, we finally got to trim the tree... do you see these smiles??? I {love} when their faces light up like this. 

I have taken over my momma's role of being the ornament distributor to my sweet elves. They then work tirelessly to find the perfect spot for each one which usually ends up right on top of an ornament that placed 2 seconds earlier. 

Unlike my momma, I may or may not rearrange from time to time. 

;)

Each year the kids get a new ornament. There is no set rule on what the ornament is other than it has to "match" the Christmas tree feel. My mom and I found these and I loved them! (If you can't tell they are cute little stars with a burlap tag that says "believe")  "Believe" - that word carries such great meaning. We are believers...through and through. And we are thankful that we get to spend a month celebrating the season that allows us to believe in something at all.

Such a fun way to kick off the holiday season!