I know I will probably regret saying this once I start, but I am really excited to do Elf on the Shelf with Brexton!!
Yes, I know, according to most Moms, it’s a pain in the booty and you are scrambling around the house late at night moving the elf before your little one wakes in the morning. I get it – with all the holiday shopping, decorating, cleaning, meal prepping and parties it’s a lot to think about!
I have also heard some horror stories about kids getting into mischief like their elf. For example, one mom told me she wrote “Good Morning” with lipstick on her little girl’s mirror from the elf. A few days later, her little girl got a hold of her lipstick and colored the walls since, you know, the elf did it and all!
My little one already gets into enough stuff without an elf giving him more ideas! So I am making ours more of an activity elf. This way Brexton (and your kiddos) have some fun winter-related projects each day to keep them busy while they are learning and having a great time too!
Since this is my first year, I have looked all over Pinterest for the best activities and ideas. I put them all together below with links and an easy to copy and print calendar, so you can check this task off your holiday to-do list!
Elf Arrival
We are coinciding the elf arrival with getting rid of Brexton’s pacis. He absolutely loves his pacifier but enough is enough with them! So we’ve decided it’s time to go cold turkey. We had Brexton watch the Arthur Christmas movie and have been reinforcing to him that the elves are so busy they didn’t have time to make pacis for the new babies, so we need to send his to the North Pole. I’m going to get a bunch of Christmas balloons, tie all his pacis to them and they are going to “fly” away to the North Pole! After he lets them go, he will get a massive balloon filled with glitter and his elf, so he can pop it (well Daddy can pop it). We are going to tell him that Santa and his elves were so happy about the pacis that they sent an elf down until Christmas to do fun stuff with him. That evening we will read the book that accompanies the elf.
Day 1 – Christmas Slime
Brexton will find his elf somewhere in the house with all the ingredients to make homemade slime that we will dye red and green. I was sent a link to fluffy slime that a fellow mom says is absolutely great, so this is the one we will be trying. Click here to check out the recipe from Little Bins for Little Hands.
Day 2 – Scavenger Hunt
An indoor scavenger hunt is a fun idea, especially when it is freezing outside! Our elf will have the bag and items ready for Brexton to take on his hunt! Here is the cute printable I will be using from Elf on the Shelf.
Day 3 – Christmas Book
We’re going to set up the elf reading a new Christmas book to all of Brexton’s dinosaurs and then of course read it to him! Here’s a link to this fun idea from My Mommy Style!
Day 4 – Snowman Craft
Today is a craft day! Brexton will find his elf inside a stack of toilet paper rolls that look like a snowman. Then we will do this fun cotton ball snowman craft. He loves to glue things and I think this is a great craft for his age! Here is a link to this fun craft (with a printable template!) from A Little Pinch of Perfect!
Day 5 – Car Christmas Tree
Today I’m going easy! I’ll line up all his cars to look like a Christmas tree! I may even have the elf holding a new car for him too! Here is something similar with a snowman that I found on Pinterest!
Day 6 – Color Hunt
We are going to do a color hunt today! I will get 5 pieces of construction paper in primary colors and write a number on it probably 1-5. Brexton will have to find, for example, 2 green items, 3 red items, 4 blue items, etc., all through the house. I will have mini examples sitting next to the elf – like he already did his hunt at night! Here is a similar idea from Spot of Tea Designs.
Day 7 – Snow Angel
Today we will have the elf making a snow angel in flour or sugar. To keep with the snow theme, we will make fake snow! I think this is a fantastic way for him to measure, stir and be really involved! It’s an awesome sensory experience, especially great for people that don’t get real snow where they live! Here’s a link to how to make snow with only 2 ingredients from PLAYTIVITIES.
Day 8 – Christmas Movie
The elf will be sitting on top of a box of hot chocolate and popcorn with a Christmas movie! Easy and something he will love! Here’s an example I found on Pinterest.
Day 9 – Snowball Fight
The elf will be set up having a snowball fight with marshmallows. Then Brexton will get to try to toss the marshmallows into a red Solo cup. Here’s an example from Hi Sugarplum!
Day 10 – Popsicle Stick Ornaments
You can never go wrong with ornament crafts! I’m going to have an empty box of popsicles and a bunch of sticks laying around the elf. Since he “ate” all of them we will paint them and make popsicle stick ornaments! Here are some fun ideas from Thimble & Twig:
Day 11- Gingerbread House
I’m going to set up slices of bread with ginger in the middle as something funny the elf did! Then we’re going to make a real gingerbread house from a kit with Brexton. Secretly, I think this is more for me because I haven’t made one in a really long time!! Here’s a pic from Pinterest of the “Ginger Bread House” LOL.
Day 12 – Christmas Stickers
Another easy day! The elf will be covered in stickers and I will have a holiday Christmas sticker set for Brexton to play with too! I love this idea from Pinterest!
Day 13 – Pickle Ornament
Since it is so close to Christmas, we will do our “pickle present”. It’s a tradition that my parents always did with my brother and me as kids. We would have to find the pickle ornament on the tree and when we found it we would get one present early. I will have the elf sitting in the fridge on a jar of pickles to coordinate!
Day 14 – Christmas Eve
Christmas Eve! I’ll have the elf with cookie ingredients and carrots (for the reindeer). We will make cookies for Santa, write him a letter that the elf can take back with him to the North Pole and leave out carrots for the reindeer! Here’s a cute little idea from Building Our Story!
I hope this is an easy guide that will make your Elf of the Shelf experience easier and lots of fun for your kiddos!
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If you have any tips or ideas to share, please leave them below! It’s so fun to see all of the elf ideas!