Strolling through a big-name bookstore with my kids, my eyes fall on a display propped up in the centre of the main aisle, with a pyramid of Elf on the Shelf boxes taunting me. Beside the boxes sit stacks of Christmas attire and accoutrements for the haunting holiday nymph, and as my kids gleefully point out the newest props that they want me to purchase for their unwelcome holiday friend, I can feel my blood boil.
October has only just begun, and I’ve barely made my way through the burdens of the back-to-school season. I’m already haunted by the pressure to procure the perfect Halloween costumes for all three of my kids, so the chilling sight of Christmas cheer leaves me feeling a mix of anxiousness and anger.
The push of pumpkin spice everything before the summer came to a close was irksome enough, but the sight of Santa, snowflakes, and season’s greetings spewed on store shelves is just plain stressing me out.
And it’s not just the premature promotion of the holidays in stores that I find to be bothersome, the bug has hit the virtual world as well.
The other day I was happily scrolling through my Facebook feed, admiring photos of my friends’ kids and laughing at mindless memes, when it happened. As my thumb swiped up, a photo of Buddy from the movie Elf, posing in an enthusiastic “I know him!” pose, was shared with accompanying text that read, “Only 12 weeks until Christmas!”
Upon seeing that, I think I threw up in my mouth a little bit.
Articles with titles such as “It’s Never Too Early For Christmas Decorations!” have been sneaking up on me spontaneously since June, and to that I say, “Yes, yes it is.” The author of the aforementioned article totes that “Our philosophies on holiday decorating are ‘the more the merrier’ and ‘the sooner the better’”, highlighting the benefits of starting the celebrations early, such as, “it’ll make your neighbours like you”, “you can show off your DIYs”, and “it could make your happier”. To these excuses I say, “Bah humbug”.
If I hear a neighbour humming “Jingle Bells” as they walk past my house or see the sight of holiday lights and door-donning wreaths at the start of October, I can guarantee that I won’t like them more as a result.
You may think that I’m being brash about the early onslaught of the holiday season, but come on, us parents can only handle so much pressure. Let us get through the to-do’s of Halloween and Thanksgiving, and then we’ll settle in and set up for the most celebrated season of the year.
Don’t get me wrong, I love the holiday season, but let’s rein it in and keep the elf off the shelf - at least until my summer tan lines have faded.
Bianca Bujan is a mom of three, writer, editor, and marketing consultant. Find her on Twitter @biancabujan and Instagram @bitsofbee.
