Uh oh! The elf has been touched, what do you do now?
The elf being accidentally touched can be a stressful moment for both children and parents, but don’t worry there's plenty of ways to restore your elf back to its magical self in no time. Use one or more of these festive ways to restore your elf's magic, helping them recover to keep the Christmas spirit alive for December.
What happens if the elf is touched?
One if the golden rules of the Elf on the Shelf is that they can't be touched or they'll lost their magic and won't be able to fly back to the North Pole. It's inevitable however that at some point over the years your elf may be touched - whether it's a curious toddler, an accidental nudge, or your child's deliberately testing the boundaries to find out if elf magic is real.
In some houses to avoid this, magical gloves or tongs can be used to touch the elf without it losing its magical powers, however if the elf is touched with hands, either accidentally or on purpose, their elf magic will need to be restored.
WAYS TO RESTORE ELF MAGIC
Don't worry if the elf is touched, there are many ways to restore their magic once again. Each family and elf is different so the way they restore their magic will vary between each household. Some methods will restore the elf's magic within a few hours and some may require the elf to have a few days rest.
Elf goes to North Pole Hospital. Instead of flying back to the North Pole to see Santa, an elf that's been touched will fly back to the North Pole Hospital to be seen by the emergency physicians who will decide how to restore their magic. This usually involves a day or two of bed rest, during which the elf can not move.
You can also have the elf bring back a medical certificate from the North Pole Hospital that proves they were seen by the emergency physicians and what they need to do in order for their magic to be restored.
Sprinkle cinnamon on Elf. Sprinkling cinnamon onto the Elf will help restore their magic enough so they can fly back to the North Pole.
Sprinkle Elf with magic dust. If you don't have any cinnamon, there's plenty of other magical dust that can be sprinkled onto the elf including glitter, sugar, Christmas sprinkles and real or fake snow. Sprinkle the magic dust onto the elf when they're touched and their magic will be restored by the next day.
Sing Christmas carols. Singing Christmas carols to the elf will remind them of the Christmas spirit and the North Pole and will restore their magic so they can still fly back to Santa and return the next day.
Write a letter apologising. Get the kids to write a letter to the elf apologising for touching them and asking Santa to please restore their magic. If your children can't write yet then write the letter for them.
Read the Elf a Christmas book. Reading a Christmas story to the elf will remind them of the North Pole and give them lots of Christmas cheer so they're able to return to the North Pole at night.
Put them in the Christmas tree to recharge. Carefully place the elf safely into the Christmas tree for the day which will help them to recharge their magic before night time.
Put them in the freezer. The freezer is cold like the North Pole and will help to restore their magic so they can fly back to the North Pole at night.
Magic bandaid. If the elf is touched you can use a magic Christmas bandaid where they were touched which will restore their magic in a few hours. These Christmas bandaids are special and can only be used on the elf.
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