I
love, love, love Christmas. So I thought why not start a 30 day countdown to
Christmas! Today is day 30 and I am kicking the countdown off with Advent
Calenders.....................
There are so many wonderful things to see
and do leading up to Christmas. A few years ago I made this Advent Calender out
of Scrapbooking paper and I still love it. We kick off on the 1st of December
and go through to Christmas Eve.
Each
year I print out the activities and blue tak them on the back of these
cards.
Then
I blue tak the cards to the wall in the shape of a Christmas tree. There is no
order to the cards, they just get placed wherever I decide that year. If you
would like to make one similar to this, the instructions are at the end of the
page.
But
most importantly is what activities I choose for my family to do. I have
compiled a list of activity ideas below. One rule I try to remember when
choosing or creating ideas, is to be realistic. If your child is at school all
day and then has a sporting activity on in the afternoon, then trying to fit
Christmas craft in to the busy schedule may not work. It is all about spending
time & having fun together in the Christmas season.
On
to the list.....
*
Bake Christmas cookies
*Christmas
Craft
*Go
to Christmas carols
*
Write Christmas cards to your friends & family
*Have
a Picnic under the Christmas Tree
*
Go look at Christmas lights
*Cook
Christmas gifts for your neighbors
*Make
paper chains
*Decorate
the Christmas tree
*Hang
the Outdoor Christmas lights
*Christmas
party with friends
*
Make a gingerbread house
*Make
snowman pancakes for breakfast
*Do
Christmas treat cooking
*Read
Christmas stories around the tree.
*Go
Christmas shopping
*Wrap
Christmas presents
*Go
to a Christmas concert
*Make
Christmas decorations
*Have
a red & green dinner
*Make
a Christmas wreath
*Watch
a Christmas movie
*Play
Christmas Minute to Win it games
*Make
a gift for your teacher
*Clean
out & Donate your old toys to charity (Make sure they are still in good
condition)
*Read
the Christmas story from the Bible
*Make
snowman pizza for dinner
*Take
family Christmas Photos
*Have
Santa photos taken
*Make
a special Christmas Drink
*Play
Christmas Bingo (kids version coming your way very soon)
*Make
Christmas shirts
*Go
shopping for a new Christmas outfit
*Listen
or dance to Christmas music
*Bake
a birthday cake for Jesus
And
if your lucky enough to live near snow....
*Build
a snowman
*Go
sledding
*Go
Ice skating
*Make
snow angels
*Have
a snow ball fight
Remember
to tailor your activities to fit your family.
Instructions
to make Advent cards -
1.
Gather a few different scrapbooking papers.
2.
Cut 25 Rectangles (10x7.5cm each)
3.
Cut 24 circles (I just traced the bottom of a tealight candle).
4.
Print numbers 1-24. My numbers are white with glitter on them, but I would
suggest doing them in black or another dark colour, as the white ones are a tad
hard to see from far away.
5.
Glue a circle onto each rectangle. It doesn’t need to be in the same spot each
time. I mixed mine around a little. Make sure that the circle is made from a
different paper to the rectangle that you are sticking it on.
6.
Stick number 1-24 onto your circles and decorate if you like.
7.
Print Activities and blue tak to back of each rectangle. Remember to check the
date that you are attaching it to and make sure it is an activity that you can
fit in that day.
8.
Blue tak to the wall, in whatever shape you desire. I don’t put mine in order,
but that is completely up to you!
Here
are some ready to go free printable Countdown cards that I found on the net
-
http://simpleasthatblog.com/2014/11/free-printable-advent-calendar-christmas-countdown-tags.html
http://www.ellaclaireinspired.com/free-printable-vintage-christmas-advent-calendar/
http://www.thedatingdivas.com/just-the-two-of-us/christmas-countdown-printable-packs/
Enjoy
planning!