Family Fun in Advent

Counting down the days to Christmas can be a difficult task for parents and children alike. All the little ones want is to get to Christmas morning, and the parents just want the waiting to be over. The children grow increasingly less patient as the decorations come out of storage and the tree is lit in the evenings.

In our house we’ve had a tradition of using an Advent calendar to lead us to Christmas morning. These are pretty cool little things and very simple. Each day our children will open a new door in the calendar to receive a piece of chocolate. So each night for the past nearly 12 years we’ve had these simple little chocolate countdowns to Christmas under our tree. Then we found ones that were a little more exciting for the kiddos – Toy Advent Calendars. Companies like LEGO and Playmobil make great Advent countdown calendars. They work under the same basic premise but each day has a small piece of a toy set instead of a chocolate candy.

Last year my wife got a little creative and made her own Christmas Countdown. If you use your imagination, the sky is the limit on this one! We take a blank canvas, paint it with a fun Christmas design or just a fun sparkly color. Then we affix little tags, one for each day, to the newly painted canvas. For more detailed directions, check out her site. This is the simple part. It’s what’s on the backs of the daily tags that makes this countdown so much fun. Each day we do a new activity as a family. Perhaps it’s reading the Christmas story from Luke 2. On other days they receive a book or devotional. We will be making crafts for the local nursing home one day next week. Baking cookies is another great activity to do as a family.

It really doesn’t matter what you do or how much money you spend on it, the point isn’t the gift or the task. The point is the time spent together. This Advent and Christmas season take some time for your family. Take a break from the craziness of life and just enjoy being around one another. Whether you make a Christmas Countdown, plan fun weekend outings, or just spend some intentional time together – you are forming a relationship with your children that they will carry with them forever.