Jumpin' on the Advent Train!

Over the last few years, I have become more and more aware of my lack of Advent, but I have struggled with how to rectify this.  While living in Florida, we tried to avoid Christmas music and putting up the tree.  The problem was we would travel for the holidays, and end up not even getting the tree or ornaments down from the attic!  In fact, I haven't seen my ornaments since 2008!!!  Needless to say, I was not happy about this situation, and became quite bitter with the idea of Advent.  In fact, I vowed this year we were putting up the tree December 1!  Then I relented a little and accepted Gaudete Sunday as a compromise.

But as Advent came closer, I decided to make a purposeful plan for the season.  This will be our first Christmas in our home!  Still planning on putting up the tree, I investigated what I could do to make the season more meaningful.  We decided to do a Jesse Tree.  This was helped greatly by my new friend, who hosted a Jesse tree ornament party!  We used the paintings she did for each day and mod-podged them on to wooden ornaments painted silver. They're beautiful and very classy looking.  Since I have all these beautiful ornaments to hang up daily, it seems choppy to interrupt that flow, so I relented to decorating the tree Christmas Eve, and I'm now quite excited about it!

Advent is about making room and preparing for the Lord.  It's about simplifying your life and making room for the Spirit.  It's about identifying with and caring for those least among us.  In this spirit, I decided to embrace a month of simple suppers.  We will have 4 vegetarian meals a week.  This will provide more time (less meal preparation!), more money, and hopefully more thankful hearts.  My goal is to shave $140 off our grocery budget in order to buy 1 goat and 2 chickens from the Heifer Project.  I'm really excited about this aspect of Advent for our family!

Finally, I read a great idea about using Advent to prepare for Christmas by way of baking!  (Food always speaks to me!)  We'll make Christmas cookies and such during Advent and freeze them.  Then during the twelve days of Christmas, we'll have special treats and a movie every night after dinner!!!

What I can't let go of (at least this year) is Christmas music.  In the last few years, I've tried putting it off, but it just doesn't work for me!  I miss it so much- and would find myself "sneaking" it!  Or I'd listen to Frosty and other such secular tunes- which does nothing for the true meaning of Christmas for me!  So at least this year, we'll start listening to Christmas music December 1.

Here's our Advent plan- day by day.  Some are holy.  Some are just fun.  How much do I love that Advent begins on December 1 this year!

1. Set up the tree with lights, begin the Jesse tree, pray with the Advent wreath, introduce the Good Deeds manger, Set up the Nativity Scene (minus Jesus and the wise men), begin simple suppers, introduce children's books, begin Advent reading Watch for the Light for me.  
2. Introduce the Little People Nativity Scene.
3. Play with gingerbread play dough and nativity scene cookie cutters.
4. Make yarn wreaths.  
5. Marshmallow snowmen.
6. Saint Nicholas Day!  This will be our first time to celebrate it.  We'll put out our shoes for some candy and read Saint Nicholas books.  It's pizza night, so we'll watch Veggie Tales Saint Nicholas: A Story of Joyful Giving.  
7. I'll set up a wrapping station of dollar store wrapping paper, bows, and tape.  They can just have fun with it.
8. Paint globe ornaments.  
9. Do a chore to earn $1.
10. Take $1 to the grocery store to buy a canned good for the poor.
11. Choose 3 toys to give to a child in need.
12. Our Lady of Guadeloupe!  Tomie dePaola's story and a Mexican fiesta!
13. Create Santa Lucia wreaths!
14. Santa Lucia party!  Turn on the outside Christmas lights in honor of Saint Lucy.  (Lucy means light!)
15. Snow Paint!
16. Bake Christmas cookies!  Choose one to eat and freeze the rest!
17. Salt dough ornaments.
18. Choose 3 books to give away to a child in need.
19. Hand/foot reindeer
20. Make cards to take to a nursing home.  
21. After dinner, put on pjs, pack thermoses of hot cocoa and drive around to look at lights.  (Ideally this would be during the 12 days of Christmas, but there's a reason we won't wait 'til after Christmas for this.)
22. Host a Happy Birthday Jesus party!
23. Make reindeer food!
24. DECORATE THE TREE!!!!!!!!!!!!  HANG UP OUR STOCKINGS!!!!!!!!!!
25. CHRISTMAS IS HERE!!!!!

So daily we'll have

• Simple suppers
• Advent wreath lighting and prayers
• Advent calendar stories/readings
• Jesse tree readings/ornament
• Christmas/Advent books available
• Children's nativity set and magnet set (at dollar tree!!) available.

For more craft or preschool ideas, follow me on Pinterest @ Magnify the Lord with Me!

This is our plan.  But all that being said, I read a great blog post today about always choosing relationship over that "great" activity that will make you go crazy.  She writes, "Always choose the relationship with your kids over the Advent activity that makes you scream. Always choose the Simple over the Pinnable."  Advent is about simplifying life, not complicating it!

I'm super excited about Christmas AND Advent this year!!!

Now I'm looking for ideas for the 12 days of Christmas!  Any suggestions?