Our Elf

A couple years ago, when Danielle was in first grade and Tyler was in 3rd grade, I thought it would be fun to join the Elf on the Shelf craze. I sold something on Craigslist and used the money to buy our own elf. I SO wish someone would have warned me what a giant pain in the butt this thing is!!

In case you don't know, the elf comes to visit around Christmas every year. Danielle decided our elf, who the kids named Candy Cane, comes the day after Thanksgiving. The elf observes the kids during the day and reports back to Santa at night while they sleep. This is how Santa knows if they've been naughty or nice. He returns before they wake up and is supposed to show up in a new spot each day. He stays in that same spot all day and can't be touched or he will lose his magic (i.e. your child will realize he is an overpriced piece of cheap plastic covered in felt). On Christmas Eve he leaves until the following Christmas. Since our elf's name is Candy Cane, he leaves candy canes on the tree when he leaves for the year.

The past two years I have been very uninspired when it comes to moving Candy Cane around. He would pretty much alternate between the window sill, the kitchen light, and the Christmas tree. Often I would be almost asleep and suddenly jump out of bed because I realized I forgot to move the stupid elf. The year we got Candy Cane was the year Tyler figured out the truth about Santa. I don't think the elf helped. Tyler didn't understand why an elf would have a "tush tag". True. I cut it off that night. Once he knew the truth about Santa and he realized how I felt about the elf, he thought it was funny to burden me further. He would encourage Danielle to write nice, long letters to Candy Cane (expecting a letter in return) and would wonder loudly why Candy Cane would sit in the same spot for 2 days in a row. This year I vowed to do better.




There are so many ideas on pinterest about creative things to do with your elf. I really haven't looked for any ideas, but so many other people do and then facebook about it, that I don't really have to search! So, now that you have the background, I thought I'd post a picture or two every once in awhile until Candy Cane leaves. I took these with my cell phone so they don't look very good, but you get the idea. And in case anyone is wondering, yes, as far as I know, Danielle still believes in Santa. I imagine this will be the last year for that magic, so we will just enjoy it while it lasts.

Danielle's Program

 

Danielle's Christmas concert was last night. Danielle had a very small speaking part, too. The concert itself was pretty good as far as school programs go. It kept moving and was only 30 minutes long. Win/win. And Danielle was in the front row so I could actually see her this year (other than the mic stand in the middle of her face).  It was supposed to be a 50s theme or the kids could wear hats & scarves as if they were outside.

Tyler took the video with my phone. The dancing santa was pretty funny and you could tell from all the smiles that the kids were enjoying themselves.  Tyler has a band concert Monday evening. I don't think we'll be aiming for the front rows at that program. :)



 

 

 

 

A Little (Very Little) Holiday Music

Keep in mind, he's been playing for only 2 months and it seems as though many classes are filled with stories of the band director's dog getting sick or other such exploits and not a whole lot of playing. Practicing outside of class hasn't been encouraged much, either. When he masters the entire song, I'll post more.

This & That

Grandma took Danielle to a paint your own pottery place while she was up a couple weeks ago. Danielle painted this alligator and Snoopy. She said none of the details (eyes, lines, etc) were there - she added them all. I thought both of these looked amazing! My daughter never ceases to amaze me with her talents or perseverance.

This is what I saw when I went in to pick Tyler up from his class at church tonight. They were shooting paper turkeys with Nerf guns. I don't remember ever doing that at church. :) Church was boring, but we went anyway. Youth leaders really have their work cut out for them now. Kids expect to be entertained, and if they're not, they don't want to be there. As a parent, it is nice when your kid wants to go to church, so I appreciate the extra efforts...and the Nerf guns.

We had a very nice Thanksgiving. Ron's mom prepared a wonderful meal and hosted a very relaxing day. We especially enjoyed getting to visit with Andy's family. It was so nice to watch the kids interact and enjoy each other. You couldn't tell they hadn't seen each other in a year. I know the pictures make it look as though all they did was play video games, but they didn't. Hide and seek in the dark (with Grandpa) was a favorite. They had fun swimming at the hotel pool, playing outisde, and snacking on popcorn together, too. Our kids were sad to leave. It's too bad we only have the chance to visit once a year, but we will eagerly look forward to that next visit. (We missed your family Leah!)

 

Danielle and her handsome shadow.

 

Emiko

 

A Diet Coke explosion

 

Kotomi (NOT playing an electronic) and Tyler

 

This is my favorite picture, and it was NOT staged.

 

Date Night

Since Ron is somewhere between Bangkok and Chicago and Danielle is up north visiting Grandma and Grandpa, Tyler and I have been enjoying a little mother-son time. We went out for breakfast before school this morning. That's always a special treat. The zoo had their members only preview for their Christmas lights tonight, so Tyler and I enjoyed a date at the zoo. We had a really nice evening together. I'm sure Danielle had a nice evening tonight, too. I'm pretty sure Ron did not...if he can even figure out when evening is/was!

 

 

 

Enjoying the Fall Weather

While Ron is slowly making his way to Bangkok, Thailand, the kids and I met Grandma & Grandpa C for lunch and then enjoyed the beautiful weather at the state park. As you can tell from the pics, the day started off sunny and nice but got a little more overcast as the day progressed. It was still a wonderful day to be outside.

The dam at the park was open, so the water was much, much lower than usual. The kids (and Grandpa) had fun walking along the dried up lakebed, exploring all the trash and treasures that were recently uncovered. We found a camera partially buried in the mud at one location. We dug it out and managed to pry the SD card out. We're hoping we'll be able to recover a few of the pictures from the card. There were lots of clams and other little mussels, too. It was suprisingly interesting. 

Before leaving, Danielle rolled down the giant hill at the top of the dam (or the "dam hill", as the kids called it, while giggling hysterically) a few times and then the kids finished off our day at the playground. We had a very nice day.

The Last of the Vacation Pics

Our cabin. It was good enough for a few days, but we probably wouldn't stay there again.
Ron and I were entertained every night by something(s) scurrying across the roof. It was a little unnerving the first night but by the last night it was kind of funny. It moved quickly, so we assume it was a squirrel(s). Raccoons managed to pry the door off the covered trash can bin one night but we didn't get to see them either. 



Although the cabin wasn't perfect, the rental company was awesome. In addition to getting a really good deal on the cabin, they were very attentive. We had to go back to sign paperwork and Ron mentioned offhandedly that the grill was rusty. That night someone showed up with a brand new grill.

The kids enjoyed the cabin. After all, it had the two necessities: a hot tub and a pool table.

We enjoyed walking the streets in Gatlinburg one evening. The kids enjoyed all the sights and attractions.

Tyler asked several times about riding the skylift and was really disappointed when we walked past it without stopping. No one else wanted to ride it. I really, really hate things like this, but I took one for the team and took him on it.

I still hate these types of rides, but Tyler and I had a really good time doing this together and I'm glad I took him.  

This experience with Tyler was probably one of the highlights of the trip for me.

We had a really nice vacation together. The kids were so pleasant and well behaved, the weather cooperated, and the mountains were so beautiful. It was truly a blessing to be able to get away for a few days and just enjoy being together. 

More Pictures from Vacation

This was our view for lunch one day.

The mountains were in their fall finest while we were there. On Saturday a cold front moved through and created a lot of fog. Even though visibility was poor, the woods and streams were still beautiful. We drove up to Clingman's Dome and above the fog. The fog rolling into the lower parts of the mountains looked like a smoky sea. It really was beautiful. It's wild to think that just a couple days later, parts of this area were covered with 4' snow drifts and the road to Clingman's Dome was closed! It might have been nice to see the mountains covered in snow, but I think we enjoyed ourselves more this way.

All those leaves were actually laying on top of the stream, so the kids had to be very careful about where they stepped!

Gatlinburg