Meet Jack, our Elf on the Shelf

Alex has been questioning the existence of Santa quite a bit, so in an attempt to keep the magic going just a little bit longer, the Elf on the Shelf came to our house.

He was instantly a HUGE hit with Ryan, who listened very attentively to the story and followed all the rules to a T, who really wanted to stay on Santa's nice list.

First up, we had to name him. Ryan wanted Jack, Alex wanted Billy Bob Joe. Since I did not want an elf named Billy Bob Joe, his official name is Jack Billy Bob Joe Swanson. But only Alex calls him that, and to Ryan, Carl and I, he is just Jack.

I enjoyed the power of Jack IMMENSELY. Ryan cared a great deal of what Jack thought about him, and a reminder that Jack was watching worked miracles. One example: Ryan is screaming at Alex (pick a reason) and I asked Ryan to apologize to Alex. "NEVER!" he screams back. "I HATE Alex! He's the meanest person EVER!" And then I sat down on his bed next to him, and said very quietly, "I think Jack would want you to apologize to Alex." Much deep, silent breathing ensues. Ryan's little sweet face scrunches up and you can literally see his emotions warring with his desire for presents from Santa, and he pouts, "All right." And off he went to give Alex a hug. Let's just call Jack a miracle worker.

Carl was more than a bit doubtful of Jack when I first brought him home.

But once he saw Jack's hold over Ryan (and the fun he could have with posing Jack), he came over to the dark side.

Literally.

He also helped stage Jack's zipline, and made it so the boys could help Jack zipline without touching Jack, lest he lose any of his magic.

 

Did Jack help Alex believe any more in Santa?

Probably not.

Especially when Jack carried not-so-subtle messages like reminding the boys to brush their teeth.

But did Alex also have fun enjoying the magic of Jack?

Absolutely.

Jack flew off back to the North Pole with Santa on Christmas Eve.

I had a lot of fun thinking up ways to make Jack relevant to the news of the day, like Kate's pregnancy announcement.

And hopefully Dad will forgive me for using his angel for Jack.

Thank goodness he only happens one month out of the year, because it did get to be a pain thinking up new ideas (thank you, pinterest and facebook friends).

And some nights I woke up with a panic attack at 3am because I realized I had forgotten to stage Jack.

But all in all, Jack (Billy Bob Joe) Swanson was a great addition to our household for thirty days.