Fun with Jingles

This week has been so much fun for Jack and Caroline. They absolutely love 'finding' where Jingles hides himself each morning from his return trip to the North Pole to visit Santa. For those of you who may not know who Jingles is, he is the Elf on the Shelf.

The elf, also known as "JINGLES" arrived a week before Thanksgiving (A very Special 'Thank You' to Mrs. Harke, known as "Ba Ba" to the kids). We put him out Thanksgiving night and read the book that accompanies the elf. His sole responsibility is to watch Jack and Caroline's behavior and report it to "Santa" each night. The next morning after they wake up, they discovered the elf had returned from the "North Pole" (with some parental assistance) and hides in a different place. Since we started this, Jack and Caroline race each other out of bed to try and be the first to spy him in his new position. However, there are some rules -to preserve his mystique they are not allowed to touch him; however, are allowed to talk to him.

It is such a joy to see them run into our room in the morning to tell us where they found him. This simple tradition has become such a nice reminder of the innocence in children and to see their minds and worlds with such anticipation and excitement of the little simple things. During the week, Stacey and the kids will call me at work to let me know where Jingles returned. To hear their voices on the phone has been a joy. Thank you Mrs. Harke for bringing this new tradition into our family.