Care & Feeding | Ending the Elf (On the Shelf)

Slate Daily Feed

Slate Podcasts

News, Business, Society & Culture

4 • 1.1K Ratings

🗓️ 24 November 2025

⏱️ 43 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

On this episode: Lucy Lopez, Elizabeth Newcamp, and Zak Rosen are trying to take some of the holiday stress off your shoulders. They have gift recommendations for every type of kid, from the sports obsessed (tickets to a game are always a win) to the young scientist (science kits like those from Kiwi Co. are sure to be a hit), they have ideas to help you make all the kiddos happy this season. But first: A listener has a very important question - how do they end the yearly (exhausting) tradition of the Elf on the Shelf. Is it possible to “kill” the elf while keeping holiday magic? Podcast production by Cheyna Roth. Video production by Micah Phillips. Join us on Facebook and email us at [email protected] to ask us new questions, tell us what you thought of today’s show, and give us ideas about what we should talk about in future episodes. You can also call our phone line: (646) 357-9318. If you enjoy this show, please consider signing up for Slate Plus. Slate Plus members get to hang out with us on the Plus Playground every week for a whole additional grab-bag of content — and you’ll get an ad-free experience across the network. And you’ll also be supporting the work we do here on Care and Feeding. Sign up now at slate.com/careplus – or try it out on Apple Podcasts. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	This episode may contain explicit language. By the way, we're going to be talking about Christmas
0:04.7	magic. So if little ears are listening, you might want to save this one for later.
0:14.4	Welcome to Karen Feeding, the show that's as honest and messy as parenting itself. I'm Elizabeth
0:20.6	Newkamp. I write the homeschool and family travel blog, Dutch Dutch goose. I'm the mom to Henry who's 13, Oliver who's 11, and Teddy who's 9. And we are currently in Delft, the Netherlands. Hi, I'm Zach Rosen. I make another podcast that's called Weirdly Helpful. And I'm Dad to Noah, who's eight, and Ami, who's five. We live in Detroit. Hey, I'm Lucy Lopez. I host another podcast as well, Mamasita Rica, and Mother to Amelia, who's 15, and Avery, who's 12, and we live in Miami. This week, we're talking gifts for all different kinds of kids in your life. Got a reader, a gamer, the outdoorsy type.
0:56.2	We'll talk over ideas and dig into the exhausting process of holiday shopping that so many of us are going to be dealing with over the next few weeks.
1:04.2	But first, we've got a letter so important.
1:06.9	We're talking about it first this week.
1:08.4	We've got a listener letter about that little shit stir that rears its head this time of
1:14.2	year.
1:15.2	I'm talking about the elf on the shelf.
1:18.6	A parent wants to know how best to end this years-long, exhausting, grueling, terrible tradition.
1:28.3	Sorry, I added all those words.
1:31.3	We've got thoughts and a lot of comments
1:33.3	about that little pointy-eared creature.
1:37.3	So stick around. We'll be right back.
1:39.3	While all the hooves of Whoville were at McDonald's eating, the Grinch from his lair started plotting and scheming.
1:50.3	Girk-in-flavored fries and odd socks will send them crackers.
1:53.5	So try the Grinch's new meal and head down to Macals.
1:59.3	Until 4th of Jan from 11 a.m.
2:01.2	Price and participation may vary while stocks last grinched for adults.
2:04.6	Welcome back. It's time to answer a listener's question.
2:08.3	This one is from Matt.
	...

Transcript will be available on the free plan in 18 days. Upgrade to see the full transcript now.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Slate Podcasts, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Slate Podcasts and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.