Perfect Moment Monday: George

It’s the last Monday of the month which means its time to share our Perfect Moments from November with Lori from Write Mind Open Heart.

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After a few years of hearing about other families and their elves on their shelves, we decided to jump on the bandwagon. We introduced the idea to our kids last week, on the day after Thanksgiving.

Sean was already familiar with the concept, apparently from reading a related storyline in the Diary of a Wimpy Kid book series.

We read the book, which included the back story of the Elf on the Shelf and came with our very own elf. We also had the opportunity to name our elf. Once we named it then he received his magic, which allows him to fly back to the North Poll every night to check in with Santa and let him know how the Benson kids are behaving in the weeks leading up to Christmas, as well as relay/put in a good word for some of the items on their wish list.

When it came to naming our elf, Sean suggested Zach, Bob threw out George and Abby came up with a number of long names that didn’t make a lot of sense. Surprisingly in the moment I couldn’t come up with another name, so we discussed Zach versus George. Abby liked George and so did I, in part because my paternal grandpa use to randomly and lovingly tease me by calling me George.

Though Zach is a nice name and I felt bad that we didn’t go with Sean’s idea, we all agreed on George. From that point on the kids knew, from the story and later watching a corresponding video, that they were not to touch George or he could lose his magic, precluding him from being able to fly to/from the North Pole every night while they are sleeping. Prior to us learning that part of the elf on the shelf tradition, Sean and Abby each got a chance to hold our elf.

So we put George on top of the entertainment center, in our family room, while we watched the video called An Elf’s Story. The whole thing seemed part elaborate marketing plan to sell Elf on the Shelf products (which I clearly fell for) and part very sweet story (similar to The Polar Express) about believing in Santa Claus and the meaning of Christmas (though not really the Christian perspective).

Sean loved that one of the main characters in the movie was a nine-year old boy, just like him, who is questioning if Santa and the elf (named Chippy in their family) is real. The also boy has two younger sisters in the story, similar to Sean (though one of his isn’t living), which we also thought was a cool coincidence.

The first night we had George, Sean wrote a note to Santa ask if “George (could) really fly?”

The next morning Sean and Abby found George on the mantle of the fireplace, in our living room, with a reply from Santa that read,

Dear Sean,

Do you believe George can fly?

Love, Santa

The second night we were out-of-town and when we came home the next day Sean proclaimed that “if George is real, he will not be in the same place he was when we left, even though we didn’t sleep in our house last night.”

Sure enough when we walked in the house Sean and Abby found that George was no longer on the mantle in our living room. They found him sitting in the branches of our Christmas tree, which we had begun to decorate before we left town.

This morning when the kids woke up they found George sitting on the light fixture hanging over our kitchen table (we are due to change a light bulb there). They both seemed very pleased to find that George had moved again, helping them to continue to believe that their Elf on the Shelf is flying to and from the North Pole every night.

My perfect moment this month is enjoying this new holiday tradition with Sean and Abby. I love seeing their wonder and excitement every day when they search for and find George.

Oh, to have the faith of a child…

I look forward to continuing to see and experience this Christmas season through my children’s eyes. It brings me so much joy to believe with them.

Do you have an elf on the shelf at your house? What is his or her name?

If not, what are some of your favorite holiday traditions?
(You can also tell me about them, even if you do have an elf.)

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Lori from Write Mind Open Heart says that “Perfect Moment Monday is about noticing a perfect moment rather than creating one. Perfect moments can be momentous or ordinary or somewhere in between.” I love the idea of being mindful of and blogging about perfect moments. Over the years I have often used my blog more to write about things I am struggling with and though I know that is valid and important for me at times, I appreciate the idea of being intentional about also sharing the simple and very special moments in our lives. Many thanks to Lori for this wonderful opportunity to focus on what is right in our life, instead of what is wrong. 

Click here to read about and comment on more Perfect Moments (there are links to others’ posts at the bottom of Lori’s blog entry) and/or add a link to one of your own. Thank you for reading. I hope that you have a wonderful week and that you are aware of, as well as able to notice, many perfect moments in your own lives.