Ideas for helping your Elf on the Shelf show Disney Side

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Next week is a week that many of us parents have been simultaneously dreading and looking forward to since Christmas Day 2014: It’s the return of the Elf on the Shelf shenanigans. Dubbed Elf Scout Return Week, Nov. 27 through Dec. 4 is the time when most families welcome back their scout elves or adopt new North Pole helpers. Our elves, Sugar Plum and Blizzard, usually arrive the day after Thanksgiving.

For those who have somehow missed this very popular recent Christmas tradition, allow me to give you a brief explanation. The plush elves are sent by Santa to keep an eye on the children of the family and to report back each night whether they should be on the Naughty or Nice list by the time Christmas arrives. But the elves like to have a little fun, too, so when they return in the morning from their trip to the North Pole, they move to a different spot in the house. Often, they get into some mischief, which surprises the kids when they wake up.

The official rules: “First, a scout elf cannot be touched; Christmas magic is very fragile and if a scout elf is touched it may lose that magic and be unable to fly back to the North Pole. Second, a scout elf cannot speak or move while anyone in the house is awake! A scout elf’s job is to watch and listen.” The only exception to this rule is that children may gently play with their elves on Christmas Eve because they do not need magic to get back to the North Pole that night; they ride with Santa on his sleigh that night.

I love seeing photos of the elves’ endeavors at different houses! When I was perusing recently, it occurred to me that our Sugar Plum and Blizzard have not shown their Disney Side enough. That seems unforgiveable given our family’s love of Disney!

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There are so many clever Disney-themed ideas on Pintrest, Etsy and other online sites. Here are some of my favorite Disney-themed ideas that the elves set up:

** Recreate attractions from the Disney Parks.

** Use a felt Mickey Mouse hat ornament to make an elf hat.

** Dress up an elf as a Disney Princess.

** Give a new elf a “My First Visit” button from one of the Disney Parks.

** Decorate a stack of toilet paper rolls to look like Olaf.

** Have the elf announce or count down a trip to Walt Disney World or Disneyland.

** Set up a meet-and-greet with a Disney plush character.

** Draw red reindeer noses or mustaches with a dry-erase marker on the glass of a framed photo of your family at Disneyland or Walt Disney World.

** Allow Elf to sit on the couch to play Disney Infinity.

Has your elf shown his or her Disney Side? Tell us about it in the comments!

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2 Replies to “Ideas for helping your Elf on the Shelf show Disney Side”

  1. Our elf “Archie” visited Magic Kingdom for a day! He rode several rides, met different characters, & even met some little princesses. He has pictures of his adventure. ((Archie went in place of his best friend because he had to go to school.))

    KRISTIN: Love it! I wonder if our Blizzard and Sugar Plum would like to go to WDW? 🙂

  2. Wow! Is this your recreated miniature Disney resort model setup? Where and when did you get this set? Is it still available?

    KRISTIN: It is my son’s setup. The monorail, Cinderella Castle and (I think) the Epcot and Animal Kingdom play sets are still available at Walt Disney World. I’m not sure about the Hollywood Studios play set, and I haven’t seen the monorail hotels in a while. You can get most of the pieces on eBay, but they are outrageously expensive.