Elf Magic, our new holiday tradition!

There is really nothing more magical than children at Christmastime – that is except for a child who has their own special Elf to share the season with.  From the moment our Magic Elf arrived from the North Pole, I knew he was going to be a very welcome house guest this holiday season… and each thereafter.

  It started with a note to Santa, requesting an Elf-Magic Elf of our very own to come stay with us.  Shortly thereafter, our Elf Ryan arrived fresh from the North Pole in our milk delivery bin on our front porch.  We think it was because it was awful cold when he arrived and he was looking for a place to take a nap where he could really stretch out and get comfortable, but my daughter was certainly thrilled when she went to get our milk order and found her sleeping Magic Elf.

Ryan was pretty sleepy that first day because of his long journey from the North Pole, so we set up his luggage and his personal effects in our living room so he could sleep a little longer.  He actually slept all the way through dinner, so we left him his favorite snack of crackers (it reminds him of snow crunching) and ice water (snowflakes melting) in case he got hungry when he woke.  My daughter also sprinkled him with some Elf-Magic snowflakes which we thought would make him feel right at home at our house.

What we didn’t anticipate was that all this sleeping during the day was going to make him rather playful come nightfall, but that’s exactly what happened.  That first night he got into all sorts of mischief, even eating a small bite of my daughter’s carrots for her lunch the next day.  We woke to find he had spent most of the night in the fridge and eaten all his crackers, so he must have been quite hungry from his trip.

Unfortunately we haven’t been able to really get Ryan acclimated to our time and he has remained pretty sleepy during the days.  He spends most of his time snuggling one of the kids, or relaxing in our dollhouse, sometimes even snoozing through a tea party, but it’s at night that he really gets his energy and gets into all sorts of mischief (or Elfcapades, as we have come to call them).   

I must admit that it’s really not so bad having him around, though, since he did clean the kitchen once for me.  He even left me a note letting me know that he sees (or hears, since he’s usually sleeping) me do a lot around here and just wanted me to take a little break.  I’ve also seen signs that he’s cleaned up after my kiddos a few times, putting their animals all in a row and covering up their dolls to keep them warm.     

If you had asked me a few weeks back if I had ever considered letting an elf stay with me, I probably would have said no.  But, now that Ryan’s here and I see how much fun he is to have around, I really can’t imagine celebrating the holidays without him.  You know how some people are just the life of the party wherever they go?  Well, Ryan is that person and he brings with him all sorts of fun and delight that just might make a believer out of anybody. 

In the midst of all the holiday to-dos, it is often easy to forget that it is our job to make the traditions that our kids can count on each year, but one tradition I know we are always going to make time for is hosting our little Elf guest.  I will certainly miss Ryan when he’s gone back to the North Pole, as will the rest of the family, but at least I know that he will be back again next year and the Elfcapades will continue!

If you would like to start a wonderful family tradition with your kids, you can check out Elf-Magic.com and see all about how to send Santa a letter requesting your own boy or girl Magic Elf visit you this holiday season!  You can also click on the Elfcapades tab and see what kinds of adventures other families have had with their elves!

Connect with www.elf-magic.com via Facebook and Twitter to see great stories of Elf-Magic elves all over the world!

A big thank you to Santa for answering my daughter's letter and sending Ryan the elf to adore this holiday season.  He will be a welcome addition to our family each holiday season!