Advent Activities: An eBook, Free Jesse Tree Printable & Advent Countdown

Can you believe that December is just 2 days away? We just finished unpacking a few more boxes so that we can put our tree up this evening. Yay!

As December begins, it’s time for us to focus on the true meaning of Christmas, the coming of the baby who would save the world. Here are a few Advent activities if you’d like to join us.

Christmas Countdown Garland

I confess…. Even with all my efforts to create An Organized Christmas, I just found a project today that I’m going to try to pull off by Thursday. {blush} I suppose that’s just part of my personality that will never change. When I find a great idea, I just HAVE to do it, even if I’m not prepared for it. I’d rather be rushing around now to do something fun than two days before Christmas though!

I just found this adorable Christmas Countdown Garland, and I’m putting one together today. Yes, that means a trip to the craft store (but I have a gift card!) and some time putting it together tonight. But I think it’s worth it. Each little pocket holds a Christmasy activity for our family to do together. We’ll include things like making hot cocoa, singing by the Christmas tree, driving to see the lights, reading the Christmas story, and other things that we definitely want to do this year. And of course I’ll arrange each activity in the pockets according to our calendar. 🙂 And I may be found switching them around if we end up with a curve ball or two in our schedule.

You can find the directions and lots of great pictures of this activity over at The Crafting Chicks.

The Jesse Tree

Last year we did our first Jesse Tree with Emma. If you’ve never heard of a Jesse Tree, it’s an advent activity. Each day you color an ornament that represents a bit of the lineage of Christ. The tree begins with creation and stretches through the Old and New Testaments until you reach the story of the birth of Jesus. Each day you read the scripture and add a corresponding ornament to a small tree. The tree can be a small artificial Christmas tree, some branches in a bucket… whatever works for you.

If you want to try this activity this year, I recommend keeping it simple. You can download some FREE printable Jesse Tree ornaments that my husband created for Mandi at Life… Your Way. These are the ones that we’ll be using with Emma. We usually do our Jesse Tree ornament after dinner each evening. We read the scripture, Emma colors the ornament, and we put it together and hang it on the tree. It’s a simple daily reminder that we’re celebrating Jesus this season.

Truth in the Tinsel

As the hustle and bustle of the Christmas season begins, it’s more important than ever to remind our kids about the true meaning of Christmas. There’s a new ebook available to help us do just that. Truth in the Tinsel: Advent Activities for Little Hands is full of Scripture reading, ornament crafts, talking points and extension activities,fun printables, and templates.

Truth in the Tinsel: Advent Activities for Little Hands is available for $4.99. If you want your kids to stay focused on Jesus this Christmas, you may want to download a copy of Truth in the Tinsel: Advent Activities for Little Hands.