Careful: Elf on the Shelf is Watching

  Am I the only one who finds the whole Elf on the Shelf phenomenon a little disturbing? As if it's not enough that Santa sees you when your sleeping and knows when you're awake, now children everywhere are  being spied on by this miniature elf with his creepy plastic grin.

  I was introduced to him last year while working at an in-home daycare where he was doing his watchful duty. One day something happened, I can't remember exactly what, but it had to do with one of the kids not being good. (Some things that were defined as not being good were pretty insane: a two year old pooping in their pants and then expecting help changing them? Bad. But I digress.) A note showed up from Elf on the Shelf saying that he was so sad that he had to go away because the children there weren't good.  I, in my naivete, believing that the elf was meant to be a fun tradition for the kids, assumed he would come back. He never did. Luckily, the kids didn't seem to miss him. At all. And can you blame them? I mean, look at him. It was like he wasn't even there for fun,  just as another way to guilt the kids into being good.

  To be fair, I have seen some pretty fun, creative scenarios that some moms have come up with for the little guy.  I especially like the pics over at Holly at Nap Time because that elf is just as bad as any kid, even going so far as to steal from their mother's wallet.  Maybe my strong feelings against the elf hype are because of my own negative experience of him being used as a method of tricking kids into behaving. But I still don't think that if I had kids, I would feel like I needed to tell them that the elf was alive and watching them.

Come on guys, he's creepy, right?