A couple years back, someone sent us the “Elf on the Shelf.” If you’re not familiar with this, it’s a toy elf that you put on the shelf. The idea is that it’s watching and reporting back to Santa each night.

I’m not a huge fan of the whole Orwellian Christmas thing, but the kids love trying to find the Elf each morning. They named it Willie Bob Nice, and it re-appears each Christmas. This year it showed up in the Christmas tree the night after we decorated it.

Sunday evening, however, I encountered a problem. I walked into the living room and found my oldest son sitting in the dark and whispering up to Willie Bob Nice.

“What are you doing?” I asked.

“Telling him what I want for Christmas,” he answered. “He’ll let Santa know.”

Hmm… Not real sure what to do with this one, especially after the Tooth Fairy incident.