Saturday, December 14, 2013

Saving on Christmas-"Elf on a Shelf" on a budget

I had wanted to start the Elf on a Shelf tradition with the kids, but I didn't want to pay the $30.00 price tag for it.  Honestly, $30?  I put it off as long as possible, but this year I knew we had to go for it.  The kids knew about the elves-they had seen them at Poppy's and Nanny's, and they knew Hunter had one.  I went to Target a couple of times and had one in the cart, then put it back.  I just didn't want to spend so much on an elf.  I happened to see at Target where they now have a whole "Elf on a Shelf" section, with plush elves, fleece blankets, and even clothes for your elf to wear.  The plush elves were only $12, so I decided to get one of those and try it.  I figured the worst thing that could happen would be the kids didn't think it was a true elf, and I had to buy the $30 one.  I was willing to chance it. 
The first day he showed up, they were thrilled.  We have had him for several weeks now and he's worked just fine.  $12 and we have an elf.  The plus ones are just a bit different from the "normal" ones because they have a fat face.  The seem to weigh a bit more than the regular ones, making them a tad harder to position, but I'm willing to deal with that for the price difference.  For instance, I don't think you could really wrap his arms around anything and leave him that way, he kind of needs to be sitting. 
You can still be a bit creative though, he's been in our small Christmas tree, in a hanging plant, and a few other creative places.
You don't get the book this way either, but my kids knew exactly what the elf was about so it didn't matter.

Also- I did check Ebay just today, but the prices for the elves on there seem a bit higher than Target even.  Not sure what that's about. 

Now behave, the elf is watching!  :-) 

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