It’s official!! It is the Christmas season and almost time to pull out the advent calendar! How did everyone enjoy their Thanksgiving Day? We had a very simple and quiet Thanksgiving this year. We had my Mother-in-law and Father-in-law over, and enjoyed a nice meal and played board games together. It was really nice not making a full turkey this year. Normally our leftovers last forever! They are all already gone! Plus, there were a lot less dishes to clean after our meal this year as well.

One fun thing that we did differently this year, was purchasing a large turkey balloon. I took my 18 month old boy grocery shopping, and he talked me into it. We were in the checkout line and he kept pointing at it and giggling. Well once it was home, it became a big deal. Every time he acknowledged that it was there and pointed at it, he expected everyone in the room to notice it as well. It went on all week, and was so adorable!

Other than that, we took a break from school this week for the holiday. My daughter still had her two dance classes on Monday and Awana on Tuesday evening though. I think I needed a break more than my daughter. I really wanted to clean the house and work on some crafts and of course decorate for Christmas. I’m hoping to get enough crafts created to maybe go to some craft fairs next year. I have never sold at a craft fair before, but I think it will be a lot of fun. I make some unique jewelry and other things that involve crochet, beading, woodwork, and more. Once I get more items finished, I will share them with you.

Advent Calendars

My family loves doing advent calendars. It is something small that the kids and sometimes even the adults get to enjoy everyday of December leading up to Christmas Day. In this post, I want to share with you all of the advent calendars we use each year, and some new ones that we are trying out this year. Most of the ones we use are things that we have purchased online or have been gifted. There is one that was gifted to me that my Mother and Father made one year. It is definitely possible to make your own advent calendar. We just haven’t done it yet, because we enjoy the ones we already have!

Christmas Tree Advent Calendar

This one is a favorite of ours, because it can be different every year. My parents made me this as a Christmas gift when I moved away for college. It is just a simple tree shape cut out of wood, with 25 circles that hold 25 small containers. The containers look like ornaments! You can put literally any tiny item you want to put in them for your children. Normally we do candy, and small Dollar Tree ornaments. My daughter loves to hang up ornaments throughout the month, so this allows her to be able to do that. We will probably continue this tradition this year, so my son can take part in it as well.

If you rather do small gifts, you can put little things like jewelry or Lego pieces in them. It would work to put some money in the containers as well. I would save the container for the 25th for the most exciting gift though, since it is Christmas Day. If you wanted to make something with larger containers, I have seen someone glue cups on a large piece of paper in the shape of a tree. Then you put your gifts in the cups and cover each cup opening with tissue paper. A very easy and fun way to have an advent calendar.

The Wonder of the Greatest Gift Advent Calendar

This advent calendar was gifted to us a few years ago by my in-laws. It is such a wonderful book full of stories from the very beginning in Genesis all the the way up to the arrival of baby Jesus. The book is beautifully written and has wonderful artwork throughout it. At the time the reading was a little too advanced for my daughter to understand it, so I just read the main points to her, and she still put up the ornaments. Now that she is a little older, she absolutely loves and looks forward to learning about God and the story of Jesus each day and putting an ornament on the tree. You can find this book at https://www.christianbook.com/wonder-greatest-interactive-family-celebration-advent/ann-voskamp/9781496427991/pd/427991?en=google&event=SHOP&kw=calendars-0-20%7C427991&p=1179710&utm_source=google&dv=c&cb_src=google&cb_typ=shopping&cb_cmp=233748492&cb_adg=14972851452&cb_kyw=&snav=GMERCH&gclid=CjwKCAiA04arBhAkEiwAuNOsIjmVLzMxMonYjYysN2ATLbgn31FazucxMfxyKJbw9Ks8Rk-iIZuM9xoCie4QAvD_BwE#CBD-PD-Description.

Another great book that we enjoy reading along with “The Wonder of the Greatest Gift” is “The Advent Storybook”. It is very similar, but easier to understand. I like to read this book right after we hang up the ornament for the other book. It is a great way to really make sure your children are understanding each story of the Bible. This may even be a better book to start out with if your children are younger. I hope you enjoy it as much as we do! It can be your morning Bible time with your children for the month of December. If you want to check it out, you can find it at https://www.christianbook.com/advent-storybook-laura-richie/9780830776085/pd/776081?en=google&event=SHOP&kw=childrens-books-0-20%7C776081&p=1179710&utm_source=google&dv=c&cb_src=google&cb_typ=shopping&cb_cmp=20698492698&cb_adg=155759876798&cb_kyw=&snav=GMERCH&gclid=CjwKCAiA9ourBhAVEiwA3L5RFuxSyd24lUqm7ZBp2YvUgaxyUQIgd_2fvBB9lfMBR-nKeyvC9EhC0hoCTlcQAvD_BwE.

Seven Days Before Christmas

This isn’t necessarily an advent calendar, but it is something that I really love to do with my children the week before Christmas! I like to pull out the actual Bible reading about the birth of Jesus. It is a really nice way to add even more detail to what the kids are learning in the advent calendar books. When reading this story, I like to break it up into seven days of reading, because it goes so well with another book I read along with this. This is the order of the reading I do.

• Luke 1:26-38 (Mary and the Angel)
• Matthew 1:18-25 (Joseph and the Angel)
• Luke 2:1-7 (The Birth of Jesus)
• Luke 2:8-15 (The Shepherds and the Angel)
• Luke 2:16-20 (The Shepherds visit Baby Jesus)
• Matthew 2:1-8 (The Magi and King Herod)
• Matthew 2:9-12 (The Magi worship Jesus)

Another great book to go a long with the Bible reading about the birth of Jesus, is “Christmas Love Letters from God”. If you read one section each day, it will last seven days and lines up pretty well with the Bible reading. It is such a special story, and I absolutely love how this book is written. Each section has a special love letter from God to your child. It even has a place at the end of the book where your child is asked to write their own love letter to God. If you are interested in purchasing this book, you can find it here: https://www.christianbook.com/christmas-letters-updated-edition-bible-stories/glenys-nellist/9780310154785/pd/0154785?en=google&event=SHOP&kw=childrens-books-0-20%7C0154785&p=1179710&utm_source=google&dv=c&cb_src=google&cb_typ=shopping&cb_cmp=1331660377&cb_adg=50830939382&cb_kyw=&snav=GMERCH&gclid=CjwKCAiA04arBhAkEiwAuNOsIn0BAtOXRAZfTpZ5BGq5mAE4EtqVuXjMkyQyY0Gb1oFalLOl0m6wshoCJpMQAvD_BwE#CBD-PD-Description.

Christmas Jigsaw Puzzle Advent Calendars

My family absolutely loves doing jigsaw puzzles, so when I saw this on Amazon, I had to order it! This will be the first year for this advent calendar activity, but I am sure it will be a lot of fun. The one that we bought comes with 25 boxes and 1000 puzzle pieces total. Each day, you open up a box and build that part of the puzzle. What I really like about this advent calendar puzzle, is that each day is like its own little puzzle. There are other ones that I saw that you just put together a small section of the big picture each day. This one has little separate pictures that all go together.

Each day has the number for what day you are on, and a cute little Christmas picture. It looks like a calendar when it is done! There are pictures like bells, a fireplace, or even a sleigh. Hopefully it will be fun, and we can manage to get through December without losing any pieces. My son is all about climbing right now, so we will definitely need to keep an eye on him. I plan on using the kitchen counter for this puzzle, so it is out of the way of eating meals and doing school work during the day. Here is where you can find it on Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Calendar-Christmas-Puzzles-Countdown-PICKFORU/dp/B0CG38S45L/ref=sr_1_23?crid=1G3RD2ZC6WGF4&keywords=Advent+calendar+2023+jigsaw+puzzle+Merry+Christmas&qid=1700973047&sprefix=advent+calendar+2023+jigsaw+puzzle+merry+christma%2Caps%2C325&sr=8-23.

Charm Bracelet Advent Calendars

This last one, is more of a gift for your daughter instead of something the entire family can do. My Mother-in-law gave this super cute charm bracelet advent calendar to my daughter on Thanksgiving Day. She is so excited to start opening it each day and adding to her bracelet. It does look like it has a couple pairs of earrings that she will be getting as well. She does not have pierced ears, so either I will need to make them clip-ons, or just turn them into more charms for her bracelet.

I have done a lot of searching on Amazon for different advent calendars this year, and there are so many of these little bracelet ones. It is such a fun idea for children. There are advent calendar gifts for every age online. These are just the ones that we have used so far. If you are interested in this one, you can find it at https://www.amazon.com/Advent-Calendar-2023-Girls-Fashionable/dp/B0C85JYMKL/ref=sr_1_5?crid=IAME12UTU3D9&keywords=Advent+calendar+charm+bracelet+sixth+space&qid=1700973666&sprefix=advent+calendar+charm+bracelet+sixth+spac%2Caps%2C617&sr=8-5.

Have a Wonderful Week!

I hope this past week of Thanksgiving has allowed you to recharge before heading into this Christmas season. I know taking that week off definitely helped me. Being a stay-at-home Mom and their teacher, definitely gives you the right to take a break when you need it. Your kids need a healthy you, so always remember to take a break and take care of you. I know the holidays are always a very busy time, so please try to have fun, and not worry so much about how much you are getting done each day. If your kids are homeschooled, they will make up the days when you have time. The best part about homeschooling, is getting to spend all this time watching your child grow up. You don’t have to miss it! Enjoy your week, start each day with a little prayer, and remember to have fun!