This Page

has been moved to new address

Santa and the Freaking Elf on a Shelf: Part 2

Sorry for inconvenience...

Redirection provided by Blogger to WordPress Migration Service
body { background:#aba; margin:0; padding:20px 10px; text-align:center; font:x-small/1.5em "Trebuchet MS",Verdana,Arial,Sans-serif; color:#333; font-size/* */:/**/small; font-size: /**/small; } /* Page Structure ----------------------------------------------- */ /* The images which help create rounded corners depend on the following widths and measurements. If you want to change these measurements, the images will also need to change. */ @media all { #content { width:740px; margin:0 auto; text-align:left; } #main { width:485px; float:left; background:#fff url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/corners_main_bot.gif") no-repeat left bottom; margin:15px 0 0; padding:0 0 10px; color:#000; font-size:97%; line-height:1.5em; } #main2 { float:left; width:100%; background:url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/corners_main_top.gif") no-repeat left top; padding:10px 0 0; } #main3 { background:url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/rails_main.gif") repeat-y; padding:0; } #sidebar { width:240px; float:right; margin:15px 0 0; font-size:97%; line-height:1.5em; } } @media handheld { #content { width:90%; } #main { width:100%; float:none; background:#fff; } #main2 { float:none; background:none; } #main3 { background:none; padding:0; } #sidebar { width:100%; float:none; } } /* Links ----------------------------------------------- */ a:link { color:#258; } a:visited { color:#666; } a:hover { color:#c63; } a img { border-width:0; } /* Blog Header ----------------------------------------------- */ @media all { #header { background:#456 url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/corners_cap_top.gif") no-repeat left top; margin:0 0 0; padding:8px 0 0; color:#fff; } #header div { background:url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/corners_cap_bot.gif") no-repeat left bottom; padding:0 15px 8px; } } @media handheld { #header { background:#456; } #header div { background:none; } } #blog-title { margin:0; padding:10px 30px 5px; font-size:200%; line-height:1.2em; } #blog-title a { text-decoration:none; color:#fff; } #description { margin:0; padding:5px 30px 10px; font-size:94%; line-height:1.5em; } /* Posts ----------------------------------------------- */ .date-header { margin:0 28px 0 43px; font-size:85%; line-height:2em; text-transform:uppercase; letter-spacing:.2em; color:#357; } .post { margin:.3em 0 25px; padding:0 13px; border:1px dotted #bbb; border-width:1px 0; } .post-title { margin:0; font-size:135%; line-height:1.5em; background:url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/icon_arrow.gif") no-repeat 10px .5em; display:block; border:1px dotted #bbb; border-width:0 1px 1px; padding:2px 14px 2px 29px; color:#333; } a.title-link, .post-title strong { text-decoration:none; display:block; } a.title-link:hover { background-color:#ded; color:#000; } .post-body { border:1px dotted #bbb; border-width:0 1px 1px; border-bottom-color:#fff; padding:10px 14px 1px 29px; } html>body .post-body { border-bottom-width:0; } .post p { margin:0 0 .75em; } p.post-footer { background:#ded; margin:0; padding:2px 14px 2px 29px; border:1px dotted #bbb; border-width:1px; border-bottom:1px solid #eee; font-size:100%; line-height:1.5em; color:#666; text-align:right; } html>body p.post-footer { border-bottom-color:transparent; } p.post-footer em { display:block; float:left; text-align:left; font-style:normal; } a.comment-link { /* IE5.0/Win doesn't apply padding to inline elements, so we hide these two declarations from it */ background/* */:/**/url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/icon_comment.gif") no-repeat 0 45%; padding-left:14px; } html>body a.comment-link { /* Respecified, for IE5/Mac's benefit */ background:url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/icon_comment.gif") no-repeat 0 45%; padding-left:14px; } .post img { margin:0 0 5px 0; padding:4px; border:1px solid #ccc; } blockquote { margin:.75em 0; border:1px dotted #ccc; border-width:1px 0; padding:5px 15px; color:#666; } .post blockquote p { margin:.5em 0; } /* Comments ----------------------------------------------- */ #comments { margin:-25px 13px 0; border:1px dotted #ccc; border-width:0 1px 1px; padding:20px 0 15px 0; } #comments h4 { margin:0 0 10px; padding:0 14px 2px 29px; border-bottom:1px dotted #ccc; font-size:120%; line-height:1.4em; color:#333; } #comments-block { margin:0 15px 0 9px; } .comment-data { background:url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/icon_comment.gif") no-repeat 2px .3em; margin:.5em 0; padding:0 0 0 20px; color:#666; } .comment-poster { font-weight:bold; } .comment-body { margin:0 0 1.25em; padding:0 0 0 20px; } .comment-body p { margin:0 0 .5em; } .comment-timestamp { margin:0 0 .5em; padding:0 0 .75em 20px; color:#666; } .comment-timestamp a:link { color:#666; } .deleted-comment { font-style:italic; color:gray; } .paging-control-container { float: right; margin: 0px 6px 0px 0px; font-size: 80%; } .unneeded-paging-control { visibility: hidden; } /* Profile ----------------------------------------------- */ @media all { #profile-container { background:#cdc url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/corners_prof_bot.gif") no-repeat left bottom; margin:0 0 15px; padding:0 0 10px; color:#345; } #profile-container h2 { background:url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/corners_prof_top.gif") no-repeat left top; padding:10px 15px .2em; margin:0; border-width:0; font-size:115%; line-height:1.5em; color:#234; } } @media handheld { #profile-container { background:#cdc; } #profile-container h2 { background:none; } } .profile-datablock { margin:0 15px .5em; border-top:1px dotted #aba; padding-top:8px; } .profile-img {display:inline;} .profile-img img { float:left; margin:0 10px 5px 0; border:4px solid #fff; } .profile-data strong { display:block; } #profile-container p { margin:0 15px .5em; } #profile-container .profile-textblock { clear:left; } #profile-container a { color:#258; } .profile-link a { background:url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/icon_profile.gif") no-repeat 0 .1em; padding-left:15px; font-weight:bold; } ul.profile-datablock { list-style-type:none; } /* Sidebar Boxes ----------------------------------------------- */ @media all { .box { background:#fff url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/corners_side_top.gif") no-repeat left top; margin:0 0 15px; padding:10px 0 0; color:#666; } .box2 { background:url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/corners_side_bot.gif") no-repeat left bottom; padding:0 13px 8px; } } @media handheld { .box { background:#fff; } .box2 { background:none; } } .sidebar-title { margin:0; padding:0 0 .2em; border-bottom:1px dotted #9b9; font-size:115%; line-height:1.5em; color:#333; } .box ul { margin:.5em 0 1.25em; padding:0 0px; list-style:none; } .box ul li { background:url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/icon_arrow_sm.gif") no-repeat 2px .25em; margin:0; padding:0 0 3px 16px; margin-bottom:3px; border-bottom:1px dotted #eee; line-height:1.4em; } .box p { margin:0 0 .6em; } /* Footer ----------------------------------------------- */ #footer { clear:both; margin:0; padding:15px 0 0; } @media all { #footer div { background:#456 url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/corners_cap_top.gif") no-repeat left top; padding:8px 0 0; color:#fff; } #footer div div { background:url("http://www.blogblog.com/rounders/corners_cap_bot.gif") no-repeat left bottom; padding:0 15px 8px; } } @media handheld { #footer div { background:#456; } #footer div div { background:none; } } #footer hr {display:none;} #footer p {margin:0;} #footer a {color:#fff;} /* Feeds ----------------------------------------------- */ #blogfeeds { } #postfeeds { padding:0 15px 0; }

Sunday, December 4, 2011

Santa and the Freaking Elf on a Shelf: Part 2

Tommy came home the other day and said he felt bad because a lot of kids were saying Santa wasn't real at school. Of all my kids, Tommy has the most magic in him. He has the biggest capacity to believes things that he can't see. He's usually my optimistic kid so when he comes to me with that stuff, I do what I can to keep him believing. There is a fine line between wanting your kids to still believe in Santa and not wanting them to get made fun of because of it. I think Tommy and Belle are pretty close to that age. I asked him what he said when someone said that and he said he didn't say anything. I said that was a good idea and then told him that there were people all over that were going to tell him things didn't exist that he thought did. I asked if he believed in God and he said, "Of course!" I told him some people would try and tell him that there was no God even though he believed in God. He nodded with understanding. I asked him if he believed in miracles and he said, "Yes." I told him some people don't believe in miracles and he said, "But look at Gia and Nico and I are healthy and we have CF." (I should mention here that I don't think he came up with that on his own. I think that has been from the millions of times I tell them that it is a miracle that they are as healthy as they are when they complain about having CF and when Gia is throwing a fit, I remind myself out loud no matter who is around that she is a miracle.) Then I said, "So, Santa is a lot like that. Some people believe in him and some people don't. It's up to you what you believe." He thought about it for a second and said, "I believe in Santa." Whew!

Isabella is my child that likes to try and "catch" me in a lie or tries to look for presents so it makes me think she doesn't believe anymore. Just when I think it is a fight not worth fighting, though, she will say something so child-like and so innocent about the North Pole or the elves or about Santa that I know she still wants to believe. She has the least to lose when the truth comes out. Her gifts are very inexpensive so she'll still get what she wants. It will be a relief when Tommy finally knows because I can tell him that his stuff is so expensive and either "we can't afford it" or he has to accept less things. I think that is what made Nico the saddest. Knowing it is us that are buying instead of "elves making it". He is a pretty with it kid and feels bad asking for too much so he thinks he is doing us a favor by asking for less (though not so with it that he doesn't understand that two of his things are more expensive than anything we have ever bought him in his life). Whether she believes in Santa or not, she is a crazed lunatic about the Elf on a Shelf. That is what is confusing. She must still believe in Santa if she believes that a stuffed elf that can't be touched and hides leaving little goodies is real.

On that note, I want to find whomever thought up the Elf on a Shelf and hang them on a shelf. It pains me, after cleaning my whole house, to buy crap that I'm going to find in corners and on floors all over the house. With a baby in the house, I am in for many more years of hiding this thing and leaving small, useless toys or candy. This year, I have devised a plan to get out of buying things for Nico. Besides candy, do you know how hard it is to come up with things for a 13 year old that aren't expensive? I am going to have him touch the elf in front of the twins. Somewhere in the book it says that he loses his magic if he is touched. It's possible that Isabella made that up because I don't actually remember that part but once, Isabella shrieked louder than ever before because Nico touched the elf and she was afraid he wasn't going to come again. I calmed her down by telling her that it only meant that the person that touched him wouldn't get a gift until they apologized. So this year, Nico is going to touch him and not apologize so he won't get gifts. I'm hoping he goes along with this otherwise he is only going to get candy and a lot of cavities from the elf. Last year the kids cried and cried that the elf wasn't coming to our house. I cried and cried that Leo was taking forever to put up the lights outside of our house so I finally told the kids, "The elf can't come to our house until Dad puts up the lights and decorations outside because he can't find our house without them." Now I don't have to nag him about doing it because the kids do it for me. Genius, I think.

2 Comments:

At December 5, 2011 at 6:42 AM , Blogger Kendra Mareva said...

Elf on a shelf? This may sound totally out of touch, but I've never heard of it. :?

 
At December 6, 2011 at 7:38 AM , Blogger AnnMarie said...

K, it is just another way for stores to suck money out of us in order to keep the magic of Christmas (the fantasy, not the meaning) alive. It is more popular in some parts. Might not be in yours.

 

Post a Comment

Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]

<< Home