Christmas UPDATED

For me and our house, the Christmas season starts Dec. 1. We don't turn on our lights until then (which by the way, Hugh has avoided taking down in the spring for two straight years) and I don't do any decorating. I will do Christmas "stuff" before Dec. 1, though. I like to enjoy the Christmas season and shopping in packed malls is one of my least favourite things to do, so I typically try to get that done in November. I have done a bit of online shopping and yesterday spent a few hours in the city kidless, so I am getting close to wrapping it up. Hugh and I are going to try and get a sitter and go into the city one day next week so we can completely finish it up. Hugh and I came up with a comprehensive list last night, so we should be able to be fairly efficient shoppers! I am also going to try and wrap all the gifts in November. I actually HATE wrapping so this will knock one more thing I dread off the December to-do list and since Calder recently stumbled upon one of his gifts, it will at least alleviate him from finding out what the present is if he does "find" another one! In the meantime Hugh moved all the gifts out into the garage. So much for being on top of things and wrapping them right away!

I am actually looking forward to decorating the house. Last year, I wasn't feeling well and was dreading it. What a change! I also love to bake, so in December I am going to pit in for a couple of afternoons and get my bake on. My favourites at Christmas are sugar cookies and shortbread. I will also make up some gingersnaps and some snooker doodles, I think. I like to give away baking at Christmas, so that should prevent me from eating all of these myself!

Lastly, the thing I am most excited about I think is "Elf on the Shelf". Hugh and I decided to institute that tradition this year. We bought THIS book and elf from Target, but I have linked you to Chapters since you can purchase it there if you are interested and it will ship for free if you aren't near a Target. If you haven't heard of Elf on the Shelf, here is a description from www.Elfontheshelf.com:

The Elf on the Shelf® is a special scout elf sent from the North Pole to help Santa Claus manage his naughty and nice lists. When a family adopts an elf and gives it a name, the elf receives its Christmas magic and can fly to the North Pole each night to tell Santa Claus about all of the day's adventures. Each morning, the elf returns to its family and perches in a different place to watch the fun. Children love to wake up and race around the house looking for their elf each morning.

There are two simple rules that every child knows when it comes to having an elf. First, an elf cannot be touched; Christmas magic is very fragile and if an elf is touched it may lose that magic and be unable to fly back to the North Pole. Second, an elf cannot speak or move while anyone in the house is awake! An elf's job is to watch and listen.

At first I was adamant we weren't starting this with Calder. Have you seen it on Pinterest? There are people making this thing pint sized donuts out of Cheerios with icing and sprinkles to boot. That is WAY too much work for me. I honestly didn't realize that I didn't have to spend hours staging elaborate sets each night for Calder to find our elf in. She could simple be hanging out at the top of our Christmas tree, or reading a book on the fireplace. Yes, you read "she" correctly. You can get male or female elves. Ours is a female. I would like to say there is some progressive reason I chose a girl, but truthfully it was all they had a Target! That being said, I think it will be fun to have a little more estrogen in our house in December! I think this is going to be really fun to do with Calder. Our elf is set to arrive Dec. 1. I will keep you informed of her antics!

I am not a huge football fan, but will definitely be cheering the for the Riders on Sunday. Go green, Go! Have a great weekend!

UPDATE: I just spent more time than necessary on Pinterest creating my own Elf on the Shelf board. Check it out HERE. Okay. I might be getting more than a bit excited for this!