That darn elf (on a shelf)

Last year I learned about "The elf on the shelf" and boycotted the time consuming, evil looking, over-priced elf.

This year, after hearing stories from friends about how much their kids love the thing, I gave in.

I spent $30 on an elf and a book about him. Imagine my surprise when he came and I realized that I already had the darn thing.

On the left is the official elf on the shelf (Liv named him Clifford) on the right is Thumpty-Googin, a holiday tradition on my mom's side of the family that was handed down to me when Liv was a baby. So now we have two elves.

He has been mischeavious the past two nights.

Writing in toothpaste on the bathroom mirror!

Sneaking candy in the middle of the night!  

Livie proclaimed this morning that she knows he is just a stuffed animal (and doesn't come alive at night like the book says) but that she loves him anyway. She wakes up in the morning so excited to see what he pulled off the night before.

I am still not thrilled with the trend, but I am trying to make this Christmas season fun for Liv (even though I'm not exactly in a Christmas mood). So, the elf is going to be making messes in our house nightly. Seriously, I PAID money to create more cleaning for myself. What was I thinking?