Advent Calendar...

A Homemade Advent Calendar...

So this doesn't have much to do with food, but I am gonna be a rebel and put it on my food blog anyways because I love the idea and it's super simple to make- granted, I am posting it a little late, but you could hurry and put one together and just miss the first few days of the season.... but look on the bright side, it will be ready for next year!

So, this Pottery Barn Advent Calendar (above) inspired me to make my own (mostly because I didn't want to pay $300 bucks! and because I didn't have a place to hang their contraption), but I liked the simplicity of it and thought I would make a quick, easy version of it.

I made 25 cones from craft paper by googling "paper cone templates"

Then I numbered them and punched holes in the back and strung them on a piece of twine.

So that's my version. And in each "party hat" as my daughter calls it, is a different activity or way to love and serve each other and friends, things I can do with a 2 year old to help being "others focused" during a season that can easily become "us focused". Here are some examples of what's in our days ahead:

• Bake cookies and deliver them to our neighbors.
• Buy a fun new toy and drop it off at a Local Toy Drive.
• Make play dough and deliver it to a friend. (Stay TUNED for the recipe!!!)
• Mail 2 Christmas Letters to friends.
• Make Christmas Cards for our Grammies and Papa's with construction paper & glitter.

Then there are some fun family activities and crafts as well:

• Make a Christmas ornament and hang it on the tree.
• Rent a Christmas Cartoon and pop popcorn and watch it as a family.
• Drive around a look at Christmas Lights with a special treat of your choice.
• Read Christmas Books by the fire with Daddy.

... you get the idea.... make it personal to your family and age appropriate for your kids! Just wanted to share the Christmas love.... after all it is MY favorite time of the year!!

And I just found this blog that has some other great ideas as well as a darling homemade version of a similar advent calendar.