I know elf on the shelf is pretty divisive for parents but the passive aggressive and smug memes, like Sian’s today, from parents who don’t do it really annoy me. We do elf on the shelf in our house and the kids absolutely love it. Waking up and seeing what the elves are up to is the highlight of their day. They are so happy. I get that some parents don’t like it as they don’t like the idea of somebody “watching over” the children to see if they are naughty, which is completely fair enough. And yes it is a little bit of effort to think of things for the elf to do but for us it’s absolutely worth it for the joy it brings.
It’s the message in the meme that gets me. The message is very much that the parents are happy because they don’t have to put effort into something, even if their kids would love it. There is no consideration of the children, just what the parents want, which is pretty typical for Sian and fits extremely well with somebody who is ending the Christmas holidays by flying off to Disney World without their kids.