UNITED STATES NEWS

Tooth Fairy is walk in park over Elf on the Shelf

Dec 18, 2013, 6:08 PM

NEW YORK (AP) – Carly Kerby, a mom of four girls, doesn’t have the greatest track record as the Tooth Fairy, but it was another family tradition that nearly did her in: The Elf on the Shelf.

In case you’ve been hitting the egg nog a little too hard all these years, the elf is a big seller. It involves a picture book and a stuffed, felt elf that serves as a scout for Santa and has to be moved stealthily every night, traditionally around Thanksgiving until Christmas Eve.

The elf’s mission? To report back to the boss in red on who’s been naughty or nice. After eight years on the market, more than 6 million of the kits, book and elf, have been sold, and it has climbed high on best-seller lists, with two sexes and different skin tones now available.

Kerby, in Salt Lake City, thought it sounded like fun when she took it on last Christmas.

“My first epic mistake was not knowing that a female elf existed,” she said. “My daughters were devastated that their elf was a boy and not a girl. Heaven forbid we have anything boy-related in our house. It went downhill from there.”

She forgot to move it for days and days. And her youngest, at 18 months, loves to grab it King Kong-style, a no-no by elf rules.

“Everyone here freaks out because they read the book and it says if you touch it the magic is gone,” Kerby said. “It really creates a lot of drama, but with four daughters, everything is drama!”

While, clearly, millions of people enjoy their elves on shelves, a backlash has bubbled up. There are anti-elf rants on Facebook and raunchy, bawdy and bloody visuals on Tumblr and Instagram. One photo circulating shows a green Grinch hat tied to the head of a large dog with one of those damning cardboard signs around his neck that reads: “I ate your Elf on the Shelf.”

Kim Boerman in Charleston, S.C., has pulled hard elf duty with her 12-year-old daughter. There was the time it barely escaped their German shepherd, Myka, and another time it fell from the chandelier during dinner as it hung upside down.

She procured a doctor’s prescription that states: “To Elf, address North Pole. Doctors orders: Take it easy, don’t move around a lot … rest!” Boerman and her husband even threw in a head bandage for the little guy before planting him under their Christmas tree with a toy ambulance for the duration.

Kerby said she had tons on her holiday to-do list before adding the elf, but mishaps aside, “it’s quite fun for our little girl and a nice tradition.”

The Elf on the Shelf _ you get to name it _ was born in 2005 as a self-published labor of love from Carol Aebersold and daughters Chanda Bell and Christa Pitts, co-founders of Creatively Classic Activities and Books. The company is dedicated to promoting and distributing the storybook and elf, recently launching its first sequel, a birthday elf and book. A dollar for every birthday kit sold goes to a charity working to provide clean drinking water in more than 20 countries.

“Every year we continue to be amazed and blessed with the fan response,” Aebersold said in a statement, put out after their creation recently claimed the No. 1 spot on USA Today’s best-seller list for the first time.

Other companies have gotten in on the game, including the makers of “Maccabee on the Mantel,” which includes a snuggly plush soldier for Hanukkah. And Aebersold’s company now offers games, a movie, elf couture, an elf registry online and elf adoptions in select locations around the country.

Meaghan B. Murphy isn’t ho-ho-hoing. As deputy editor of SELF magazine, the busy and tired mom of three kids _ ages 3, 20 months and 4 months _ is on elf duty with her husband.

“The elf is the bane of my December,” she said. “Her name is Arielle. She wears a Target-exclusive sparkly tutu that cost like 15 bucks. She has two. I can barely remember to brush my teeth, let alone hide her nightly or do an outfit change.”

The fact that she forgot to move the elf usually hits around 3 a.m., while she’s feeding her newborn. “At which point I run downstairs only to discover that I can’t reach her because my husband who is 6-foot-3 hid her the night before on the ledge of crown molding 12 feet high,” Murphy said. “I then peg her with things in the dark until I finally knock her down, at which point I hide her someplace glaringly lame.”

She knows an elf supermom or two. Their Facebook feeds are hard to ignore, Murphy said.

“I have a friend who staged a marshmallow snowball fight between the elf and `Monsters Inc.’ (characters),” she said. “Honestly, I don’t think my kids give a crap. They’re more excited about the chocolates in their Advent calendars.”

___

Follow Leanne Italie on Twitter at
http://www.twitter.com/litalie

(Copyright 2013 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.)

United States News

Associated Press

Arrests follow barricades and encampments as college students nationwide protest Gaza war

NEW YORK (AP) — Standoffs between pro-Palestinian student protesters and universities grew increasingly tense on both coasts Wednesday as hundreds encamped at Columbia University faced a deadline from the administration to clear out while dozens remained barricaded inside two buildings on a Northern California college campus. Both are part of intensifying demonstrations over schools cut […]

7 hours ago

Associated Press

What to listen for during Supreme Court arguments on Donald Trump and presidential immunity

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Supreme Court hears arguments Thursday over whether Donald Trump is immune from prosecution in a case charging him with plotting to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. It’s a historic day for the court, with the justices having an opportunity to decide once and for all whether former presidents […]

8 hours ago

Associated Press

USPS commits to rerouting Reno-area mail despite bipartisan pushback and mail ballot concerns

LAS VEGAS (AP) — The USPS announced on Tuesday it will follow through with its plan to reroute Reno-area mail processing to Sacramento, a move that drew bipartisan ire from Nevada lawmakers while raising questions about the rate at which mail ballots can be processed in a populous part of a crucial swing state. Postmaster […]

10 hours ago

The American and Ukrainian flags wave in the wind outside of the Capitol on Tuesday, April 23, 2024...

Associated Press

Senate overwhelmingly passes aid for Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan with big bipartisan vote

The Senate has passed $95 billion in war aid to Ukraine, Israel and Taiwan, sending the legislation to Biden after months of delays.

10 hours ago

The logo for the Tesla Supercharger station is seen in Buford, Ga, April 22, 2021. Faced with falli...

Associated Press

Tesla 1Q profit falls 55%, but stock jumps as company moves to speed production of cheaper vehicles

Tesla’s stock price surged in after-hours trading Tuesday as the company said it would prioritize production of more affordable vehicles.

11 hours ago

Pages from the United Healthcare website are displayed on a computer screen, Feb. 29, 2024, in New ...

Associated Press

UnitedHealth says wide swath of patient files may have been taken in Change cyberattack

The company said after markets closed that it sees no signs that doctor charts or full medical histories were released after the attack.

12 hours ago

Sponsored Articles

...

Midwestern University

Midwestern University Clinics: transforming health care in the valley

Midwestern University, long a fixture of comprehensive health care education in the West Valley, is also a recognized leader in community health care.

...

Day & Night Air Conditioning, Heating and Plumbing

Day & Night is looking for the oldest AC in the Valley

Does your air conditioner make weird noises or a burning smell when it starts? If so, you may be due for an AC unit replacement.

...

Collins Comfort Masters

Avoid a potential emergency and get your home’s heating and furnace safety checked

With the weather getting colder throughout the Valley, the best time to make sure your heating is all up to date is now. 

Tooth Fairy is walk in park over Elf on the Shelf