A stroke of luck

On a whim, I decided to give the boys a small something every day leading up to Christmas. I raided the dollar bin at Target and decided to call my little endeavor the "Christmas Elf."

Day one -- Saturday, I left some candy on the counter in the bathroom with a note from the Christmas Elf. The boys went CRAZY! Sam, clever as always, left me a note in my bathroom with a picture. It said, "To mom. Merry Christmas from the Christmas Elf." I excitedly told the boys that the Christmas Elf had left me something too. Sam seemed perplexed about my excitement. He thought his note would be a way to let me know that he knew I was the culprit. No luck!

Day two -- The Christmas elf left something on the kitchen counter for the boys. My elf in turn made some ornaments out of pipe cleaners for me, which I quickly stuck on the tree. (the boys glowed with pride at this gesture.) Benjamin wrote a thank-you note to the Christmas elf.

Day three -- I decided to mix things up a bit and do a service instead of give a treat. Luckily for me, the boys are slobs! So their room became my target. When I was finished, I stuck this poem to their door:

Sam and Benjamin

I went to your room to leave a surprise,
but when I saw the mess, I couldn’t believe my eyes.

Toys and blankets, books and more,
all thrown about, tossed down on the floor.

So I decided to do you a favor,
And when you see why, you can thank me later.

It’s hard for Santa to leave more toys
In a house with a couple of messy boys.

Santa likes to see boys who take care of their stuff,
But I know cleaning can sometimes be tough.

So I cleaned up your room as your surprise for the day,
I made your beds and put your toys away.

I hope this will help you keep everything clean.
Cause Santa’s coming soon (and you know what that means!)

If you want to have some new toys under the tree,
see what I did and learn a lesson from me.

Keep your room clean, keep it tidy and neat,
And I promise that Santa will bring an extra special Christmas treat!

Love,
The Christmas Elf
22 days to go!

When the boys got home from school, they were a little disappointed to not find a treat. However, they were quick to point out the last line about the extra special treat. And I got a drawing of some Christmas stockings from my little elves.

Day four -- on the way home from school, Sam asked what the Christmas elf left. I told him I didn't think there was anything yet. He said, "AHA! I knew it was you!" I told him I didn't know what he was talking about. While they were playing outside, I left a little treat on their beds with a note that said, "Thanks for keeping your room clean. Love, the Christmas Elf" We went to run a quick errand, and when we came back Sam found the treat. He came running out of his room screaming (no kidding, screaming) "The Christmas elf is REAL!" I didn't get anything from my elf today -- but their room is still clean, so that is gift enough.

It's only been 4 days, and Sam and Benjamin talk like we've been doing this for years! It's fun to surprise them, I think I may continue it for years.

Thanks to an idea from the Sprague Lab Blog, we also started doing nightly family activities. I typed up a list of Christmas activities and put it in a jar. Each night we draw an idea from the jar. We made microwave s'mores, watched a Christmas movie, and tomorrow night we are going to plan a family vacation. Benjamin asked if we can do this all year. Maybe not nightly, but weekly isn't bad. . . .

Did I mention that I love Christmas?