10 Genius Ways Illinois Parents Get Out of the Forgot-to-Move-the-Elf Doghouse

I am ashamed to admit that I have completely failed as a parent not once, but twice, this holiday season, and it is all that darn elf's fault!

My first fail happened 2 weeks ago on a Saturday night. My husband and I went to bed without performing our nightly routine, (get your mind out of the gutter, I'm talking about moving the elf here), but in the morning my oldest daughter actually saved the day. When she awoke and discovered the elf hadn't moved, and that I had fallen asleep on the couch, she yelled "Look Mom, you scared the elf sleeping on the couch, so she didn't move". It was a genius excuse that I totally ran with.

Then last night, I failed again, and my husband didn't catch my fail before the kids woke up this morning. CRISIS ALERT. Here is the panicked text I sent my husband this morning with my fingers crossed that he covered my butt. (Let me preface this by saying he's quite sarcastic, Lol);

So, as I sit here wracking my brain trying to come up with a fib to save Christmas, I did what any panicked human would do, I hit Google for help. What I found was; 21 Brilliant Things to Say When You Forget To Move Your Elf on simplemost.com. Here are 10 of my favorites that will be held in the back of my mind for current, and future, screw-ups.

1. "She heard someone coming downstairs and didn’t want to get caught, so she stayed in the same spot."
2. "You weren’t very nice yesterday. Santa told her to stay put and watch you again from the same spot to see if you will be better today."
3.  "I think he fell asleep — I heard snoring coming from downstairs last night when I was brushing my teeth before bed."
4. "[Elf Name] heard you yelling yesterday about [insert meltdown episode]. He believes in second chances, so he won’t tell Santa what you did yesterday."
5. "[Insert reindeer name] must have dared him to sit still — looks like he’s winning the bet!"
6. "Shoot! I came downstairs to get a drink last night and must have startled him. That’s why he didn’t move."
7.  "I wonder if he’s saving his magic for something extra special tomorrow?"
8.  "There was a bad snowstorm at the North Pole, so he wasn’t able to fly out last night."
9. "[Elf name] must have forgotten to set his alarm clock and didn’t want to get caught moving!"
10.  "He must be tired from working so hard in these last few days before Christmas."

FYI, I think I'm rolling with the 'snowstorm in the North Pole' excuse today...wish me luck.