When I was growing up, Advent was something we celebrated in church. We did have a paper Advent calendar hanging on our kitchen door that my sister and I took turns opening each year. I loved those calendars, but growing up, I didn't give Advent much thought.
Perhaps it was my years of teaching at a Catholic school that stirred up excitement about the season. I remember making Advent wreaths with my students every December. The Advent lessons I was required to teach talked about it being a season of preparation, and that stuck with me.
Then before I was even pregnant with my firstborn, my sister gifted me the most perfect Advent calendar. It is cloth and has pockets with the date embroidered on each one. I could not wait until my daughter was old enough to reach inside the pockets each day and pull out whatever I had tucked inside.
Over the years, the things I have tucked many things. When my children were younger, I would include a verse from the book of Luke, that when put together, told the Christmas story. I probably have included candy the most, but there have been years when matchbox cars, Lego minifigures, scrunchies, earrings, stickers, and various other small gifts have made their way into those little pockets. And yes, even with two teen boys, this tradition continues on.
Each year when my daughter hangs a little glittery snowman on the tree, she reminds me that it was in the Advent calendar. And that was the very first pocket of the very first year she reached inside. Do I love that she remembers? More than I can say.
We also have an Advent wreath with candles. That's reserved for Sundays, although there may have been a time or two when we ended up doing it on Monday morning because mom forgot. Before I bought our family the wreath and candles, I had my little ones make their own out of things like construction paper and toilet paper rolls--just like back in my teaching days.
One last tradition was admittedly hit or miss over the years, but I want to include it because even though we may not have always actively done it, it was displayed for sentimental reasons--my husband made it. So many times, I've had an idea and asked, "Can you do this?" Never has the answer been no.
The Jesse Tree that he made for our family is something that could be sold on Etsy, it was beautiful. He found a twisted branch, stained some dowels and a block of wood, and then burned images onto wooden discs, which he then drilled a hole in, stained, and tied with a red ribbon. The children always liked hanging up the ornaments but not always listening to the extensive readings that went along with each one. Sometimes I would shorten the reading, or I would simply set it up when we decorated for Christmas.
The weeks before Christmas are so much fun and quite busy, but these traditions helped to keep my little ones focused on what was most important to our family--celebrating Jesus's birth.
