Jack The Elf

I love Christmas! I think most of my favorite memories are from the traditions that my family kept alive over the years. I have so many wonderful memories of making Christmas cookies with my mom and brother, the fruit cake my Poppy would always get from my Aunt Rose, the angel wings and pizzelles, Christmas Eve spent with the whole family at my Great Aunt's house, Christmas stockings, and planning Christmas morning with my brother. We always had a pact that no matter who woke up first, they had to wake the other one before heading down to see the loot that Santa brought. The list of memories and traditions goes on and on. So this year I decided to start a new holiday tradition with Arabella and so far she is loving it! The Elf on the Shelf arrived from Amazon at Auntie Lori's house before Thanksgiving. I couldn't wait to get to Connecticut for Thanksgiving and to start the tradition on Thanksgiving night when Arabella went to bed.

So who exactly is Jack The Elf? First, Arabella named him after we read the story behind his arrival and that is where he gains his magical powers. And even though Arabella is just now figuring out Santa and Christmas, we have started to tell her about being naughty and nice. And this is where Jack comes in. He is Santa's eyes and ears around the house. During the day, Jack "watches" Arabella and then reports her behavior back to Santa at the North Pole each night. By the time she wakes up the next morning, Jack has returned to a new "hiding" place in the house to watch over her again. Each day the cycle repeats with a few small rules - Arabella is not allowed to touch Jack since he has magical powers that if he is touched may disappear and then he wouldn't be able to return to the North Pole. Jack also can't talk to her, but she can talk with him and send messages to Santa. On Christmas Eve, Jack returns back to the North Pole for one final check in with Santa before he leaves the North Pole and then Jack won't reappear until the Christmas season the next year. One positive of having Jack around is all I have to do is say "Jack is watching" when she is acting up and she stops the behavior immediately...too bad jack can't stick around all year!

Jack made his appearance at Aunt Margo's house in Connecticut and even knew when we were leaving to come home. He ended up in car and Arabella was amazed that he knew to get in the car before we left! Yes, it was a little hard to have Jack staring at me for 6 hours while I drove but Arabella enjoyed it and it kept the magic alive.



Now each morning when Arabella gets up, she looks to see where Jack is hiding and as soon as she finds him she says "There he is!" I just love the surprise and wonder in her eyes when she spies where he has moved to - and it is that wonder that makes the Christmas season beautiful!

For more info go to: http://www.elfontheshelf.com/.