Many years ago when my first son was born I was told about an idea that involves a Christmas elf named “Puddinhead”. This mysterious little elf makes a visit on Christmas Eve leaving pajamas on children’s doorsteps to let them know that Santa is on his way.

After trying it (with much success) I passed it on to my sisters and we have carried on this tradition ever since. We have grandchildren now and have enjoyed this tradition so much that my sister and I would like to share it with you.

The idea is to get the pajamas to the front door and to have someone ring the bell and hide or knock on the door while the children are in another room and let them run to the door to find the packages left for them by Puddinhead. The time of the delivery is conveniently set by the parents for what ever time the parents would like to get the children into bed that night. The arrival of their “Christmas pajamas” was the signal for the children to hurry and get into to bed quickly because Santa was on his way. Once the pajamas arrived there was never an argument about the children going to bed. (And we then had time to do our own Christmas preparation.)

Over the years the task of getting the pajamas near the front door or on the front steps of our homes has sometimes been challenging but with a little ingenuity it can be accomplished. Sharing the tradition with neighbors was always fun and we could take turns doing the package delivery and ringing the bell or knocking on the door for each other. If there weren’t neighbors that could share the task, dad would often have to “take out the trash” right before the knock. But be careful, the children get quicker each year and dad is sometimes out of breath and just makes it in the back door at about the same time the children hit the front door all excited and hoping to catch a glimpse of “Puddinhead”. When we have been traveling for Christmas Eve, Puddinhead would show up at Grandma and Grandpa’s house, or wherever we were that night.

Some of our children have run out the front door trying to catch this quick little elf, sometimes they’ve looked for tracks in the snow, some thought they saw a tree or bush move and some even thought they saw a blur of something going around the corner as they looked out. But over the years, no one has ever caught or even actually seen this little elf.

Each year it becomes more exciting for both parents and children, as the children wait for their pajamas and the parents find new ways to distract them and keep them busy until the right time.

Lets us know how this family tradition works for you and how the children react to it by filling out a testimonial

~ Mary Ann and Sandy