Merida Jingle Bells: Agree to Disagree!

      Agree to disagree:

·         I had two elves on this day so that moms with more than one little one could incorporate getting along with brothers and sisters. One was an Ole Miss fan sitting with a Colonel Reb and one was a Mississippi State fan that was with a cowbell. I wanted to teach little ones that even though we don’t cheer for the same teams, we still have to be kind to one another. We should agree to disagree.

·         Today my sister came with me. She is an Ole Miss fan, but I am a Mississippi State fan. She thinks her team is better than my team but I think my team is better. Santa saw us arguing and reminded us that Jesus wants us to get along with everyone and be respectful of others. He told us that Jesus wants us not to say mean things to one another.

·         Bible Verse: Matthew 12:31 “And so I tell you, every kind of sin and slander can be forgiven, but blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven.”

 

Merida Jingle Bells: God's Bigger and Better Plans!

      God’s bigger and better plans:

·         My lovely little monster had a toy airplane that was too small for the elf to fit in. I put the elf beside the airplane to show that the elf was massive compared to the plane. I wanted to show the little ones that we may have plans but Jesus has bigger and better plans for us than we could have ever even imagined.

·         Hey guys! Today started off not so great. I went to airplane pilot school because I have always dreamed of being a pilot. As you can see, it didn’t work out so well because I was just a little too big for the plane! Santa saw how sad I was and reminded me of the bible verse Jeremiah 29:11. That verse tells us that our plans aren’t the best, only God’s plans are the best!

·         Bible Verse: Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Merida Jingle Bells: God is Always with You!!

      Always With You:

·         On this day I had the elf hanging from the rearview mirror. My lovely little monster thought that the elf could only see her at home, so I put the elf in the vehicle so she would know that it could see her everywhere like Jesus sees us everywhere.

·         Note: Hey there! Today I decided to ride around with you in your vehicle. I wanted to remind you that I can see you everywhere, just like Jesus does. So remember be good all the time because Jesus is always with you and sees everything you do.

·         Bible Verse: 1 Corinthians 3:16 “Do you not know that you are God’s temple and that God’s Spirit dwells in you?”

Merida Jingle Bells: God's Bigger and Better Plans!

      God’s bigger and better plans:

·         My lovely little monster had a toy airplane that was too small for the elf to fit in. I put the elf beside the airplane to show that the elf was massive compared to the plane. I wanted to show the little ones that we may have our own plans but Jesus has bigger and better plans for us than we could have ever even imagined.

·         Hey guys! Today started off not so great. I went to airplane pilot school because I have always dreamed of being a pilot. As you can see, it didn’t work out so well because I was just a little too big for the plane! Santa saw how sad I was and reminded me of the bible verse Jeremiah 29:11. That verse tells us that our plans aren’t the best, only God’s plans are the best!

·         Bible Verse: Jeremiah 29:11 “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the Lord, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future.”

Merida Jingle Bells: Don't "hang" with the Wrong People!

    Don’t hang with the wrong people:

 

·         On this day I got dental floss and tied it from a hook and attached the elf to it so that the elf was hanging.

·         Note: Today I am just hanging around because it is so much fun. One of my friends told me I should try this. Santa did not like it because it made a mess. He told me that I should remember Proverbs 13:20. It says that we should be careful who we hang out with because it can lead us to do bad things.

·         Bible Verse: Proverbs 13:20 “Walk with the wise and become wise, for a companion of fools suffers harm.”

Merida Jingle Bells: The Efl on the Shelf that Teaches Little Ones About Jesus (Light of the World)

      Light of the World:

·         On this day I had the elf wrapped around a flashlight that was cut on and shinning on the elf.

·         Note: Hi again! What did you think of the REAL Christmas story? Isn’t it great? If God hadn’t sent His son, Jesus, to earth to be born in a stable, then we wouldn’t have a reason to celebrate Christmas. See my GIANT flashlight? I borrowed it to remind you to be the “light” of the world like Jesus tells us to be. That means we should always be nice and kind to everyone.

·          Bible verse: Matthew 5:14 written on it.

Merida Jingle Bells: The Elf on the Shelf that Teaches Little Ones About Jesus

Merida Jingle Bells: The Elf on the Shelf that teachers little ones about Jesus

 

Let me begin by saying I love Christmas. Actually, I love all things Christmas. The songs, the decorations, the happiness children get, and the TRUE meaning of Christmas, Jesus. (I will get to the Jesus part in just a minute). So, when the Elf on the Shelf first came out I loved it and couldn’t wait until I had a child so I could do the cool things with the elf. When you have kids your perspective changes slightly. When I had my first child I started looking up creative and fun things to do with our future elf. The more things I saw, the more I disliked the elf. My mind works differently than most but all I thought was this just seems like a lot more work for moms and dads to do. They have to think ahead of time what to do each day and think about what materials they will use. They also have to set it up and clean it up every single day. I also didn’t like how the elf was there to encourage the children to be good, yet it was destroying the house and making huge messes. I kept thinking it was sending mixed signals to children. Like parents were saying, “Hey kids this elf that is rolling the bathroom and acting crazy and bad is here from the North Pole to make sure you behave.” I also knew my child would take one look at that and think well the elf can do it, then so can I. I wanted so badly to still use the elf and I was determined to use the elf in a positive way so I came up with an elf that teaches children about Jesus!! So, I started the elf that teaches Jesus last year and posted some ideas on social media and got a lot of positive feedback. I had some other moms ask me to write a blog and share my ideas, so here is one idea below. Each day the elf brought a note with her and had a bible verse also written on it.

 

1.      Nativity Scene

·         I brought my elf out the day after Thanksgiving because my husband insists that we cannot put our tree up until then. I decided to put the elf out with the elf on the shelf book, the nativity scene, and a note from the elf. The note said for the elf to read the Elf on the Shelf book first and then read the REAL Christmas story in the bible. The reason I had her read the book first was so that she could name the elf and know not to touch the elf! I had her read the Bible last so that we could discuss after reading it in her children's bible.

·         Bible Verse: Luke 2