{Advent Action} Day 19

19 Days Until Christmas

Today's activity: "family game night with a new game"

Drew is a gamer, so I was hoping this activity would please him. I've had this game hidden in my secret gift closet since spring or summer. It was a $5.00 clearance find at Target so it was perfect for hanging onto until a rainy day...or an advent activity! Eventhough Drew's played this game before, he thought it was great! And the best part is that it was a bit of a challenge for mom and dad, too!

Scatterpillar Scramble

Object: place your marbles on the caterpillars hands while he moves and grooves to his music!

Oh, it's intense.

Reed's technique - just fist it!

I think he had a good time, too.

{Advent Action} Day 20

20 Days Until Christmas

Today's activity: "call three people & tell them you love them"

{I promise Drew picked!}

"I love you Grandma and Grandpa!"

"I love you Grammy and Papa!"

"I love you Uncle Justin!"

{Reed got his lovin' in, too!}

If you weren't called today...we love you, too!

{Advent Action} Day 21

21 Days Until Christmas

Today's activity: "empty the pantry and take items to the food shelf"

We talked with the boys about how much food we have, and how blessed we are to eat three healthy meals a day (plus several snacks!). We talked about how some people can't afford to buy food like we do, so they have to go to food shelves to get help. We told Drew that because we are so blessed, we get to share our blessings with others by donating some of what we have to them.

I was so impressed with Drew. He asked so many good questions, like "Why are we giving them our food?" and "Why don't they go to the grocery store?"

Such good questions, and I hope we gave him answers that he was able to understand.

Observing our full pantry, and explaining that we can put anything in our bags that isn't already opened.

And the emptying began! Both boys were grabbing cans and boxes, left and right! Reed was grabbing can after can, in an effort to do what his big brother was doing. Drew was a bit more purposeful. I would say something like "how about we give them some peaches?" and he'd start hunting for the peaches. When we started bagging up some cans of soup, Drew grabbed his can of Toy Story soup. I asked him if he wanted to donate that so another little boy could eat Buzz's soup, to which Drew said "YES!" and put it in the bag.

So happy to be a contributing member of society!

We need more bags!

The end result.

We then loaded up into the van and headed to a local church whose food pantry serves about 150 families each week. The boys saw the donation and distribution center, as well as the storage rooms for all the food that is donated. Drew even got to help fill one of the grocery carts for someone there to pick up their food for the week.

A learning experience for the boys, and a huge wake-up call for us.

{Advent Action} Day 22

22 Days Until Christmas

Today's activity: "write a letter and color pictures for Jairo"

Jairo is the 14-year-old boy from the Dominican Republic that Brad and I have sponsored for the past several years through Compassion International. His picture hangs on our refrigerator, and we pray for him daily as well as write him letters. However, this was the first time we've intentionally introduced him to the boys.

On our small globe, I showed Drew where we lived, and then where Jairo lives. I explained who he is and why he's important to us.

We gathered all the necessary supplies.

And got to work.

I had printed some Christmas coloring pages off the internet, but Drew insisted on coloring something from his Toy Story coloring book.

Reed did his part!

We included these three pictures along with a letter and our Christmas photo.

{Advent Action} Day 23

23 Days Until Christmas

Today's activity: "read a Christmas story"

This is one of my favorite Christmas stories. I picked it up a couple weeks ago when I was out shopping.

We read it at naptime and at bedtime.

Drew really liked it, too.

" 'Maybe Christmas,' he thought, ' doesn't come from a store.

'Maybe Christmas...perhaps...means a little bit more!' "

I don't think Jesus' birth was what Dr. Suess had in mind when he wrote those lines, but that's where we took it when we finished the story. Perfect opportunity to talk about what Christmas is really about!

I also pulled the rest of Drew's Christmas books off his shelf in his bedroom to continue to read this month. We have everything from The Beginner's Bible Very First Christmas to The Night Before Christmas to Elmo's Christmas Countdown.

I think we've got it pretty much covered!

Happy reading!

{Advent Action} Day 24

Drew pulled the first ornament off of our Advent tree this morning.

Today's activity: "Write letters to Santa."

I used this stationary here.

We sat down at the table, and I tried to prompt Drew to tell me what he'd like to write to Santa. I told him it might be a good idea to tell him what a good boy he's been before asking for anything. :)

I wrote the letter and he signed his name.

You can see that Drew's list has changed a bit since he first wrote to Santa back in August.

Reed "wrote" one too, and Drew volunteered to sign it for him.

Stuff them in the envelope...

...and don't forget to stamp it!

Then a quick field trip to the Post Office box and away to Santa it goes!

I then found this website that will send a personalized letter from Santa to the boys.

A few thoughts...

1.) I confess the crafter in me wanted to make it fancier, but I suppose anything that I can simplify at this time of year is a good thing, right? Drew wasn't *that* into it so it probably wouldn't have been worth the time.

2.) My plan to be fully prepared for each day's activity failed on day one. I know there are special Santa mailboxes or other gimmicks like that, I just didn't research enough to know where they are in our neighborhood. So forgive me, US Postal Service, for giving you a little extra work.

3.) I realize today's activity is a bit counter-intuitive to my purpose in doing this kind of "action" Advent. Writing to Santa to tell him all the things we want doesn't exactly teach generosity. It's a fine balance, I suppose, between teaching our children to give while still wanting them to experience the magic of Christmas. We just need to be sure that it's the right balance.

Counting to Christmas

I'm a big fan of Christmas. There's not much I don't like about it (except for maybe the excessive amounts of consumerism, but that's a post for a different day). One of my *new* favorite things about this time of year is creating new traditions for my boys, and for us as a family.

One of the things that I remember doing when I was kid was an Advent calendar. For my brothers and me, that meant hanging a new felt ornament on a felt tree every morning. Cute, right? Very. So cute that that was what I wanted to do for my kids. So the Christmas before Drew was born I bought an Advent calendar - a kit, made up of felt and sequins, that I would make for my children to countdown the days to Christmas.

Well. That was four years ago. And that kit? Well, I think it's safe to say that my grandchildren will enjoy it very much because that's how long it will take me to finish it!

I digress. Anyway.

In addition to wanting to do an Advent activity of some sort, I've also been very burdened lately with the concepts of gratitude and generosity. I don't know if it's just this time of year, having just celebrated "Thanks"giving, or if it's because I'm more aware than I have ever been about the depravity in the world. Whatever it is, it's weighing on me. I almost feel like God has this chorus of "Do something. Do something." running through my mind and my heart and my soul. I don't know how to explain it. I see so much need in the world that is dying (sometimes literally) to be met. I see how much I have and, unfortunately, how much more I think I need. I have been so attune to these values lately, and the burden to teach my children to not only be grateful, but to be generous as well.

So how do I do this? How do I begin to teach my children, especially at Christmas but also throughout the year and throughout their lives, to do something? To be grateful and to give generously?

Well, obviously through example. This is as much a teaching experience for me as it is for them.

How do I make it tangible? Especially to a three and a half year old and a 20 month old?

Well, thank the good Lord for the World Wide Web! There's a wealth of information online (shocker, right?) and in all my scrapbooking/crafting/mommy bloggers bloghopping, I've seen tons of new ideas for Advent (and a gazillion other things). And while I like to sew, I'm definitely a paper crafter at heart. And how wonderful to combine paper crafts, Advent, and doing something all in one! YAY!

The original idea for this came from Ali Edwards' post HERE. But the basic idea is to create an Advent calendar that prompts us to do something. That something could be a traditional holiday activity, like reading a Christmas story or baking cookies or making gifts. But a portion of our activities should also involve practicing gratitude (making a list of 10 things we are thankful for, pre-writing thank you notes for all those gifts we'll receive) and practicing generosity (emptying the pantry and taking goods to the food shelf, being someone's Secret Santa just because).

This is how I've adapted Ali's idea for our family.

I made these ornaments (from pretty Christmas paper, of course!), numbered from 1-24.

We have a small tree on our dinner table where all the ornaments hang.

Each morning, Drew will find that day's number, counting the days until Christmas (for example, today (December 1) he'll find #24 as there are 24 days left until Christmas).

On the back of that ornament will be our Advent action for the day, whether it be a fun craft project or an act of generosity. Then, sometime during our day, we'll complete our task together.

Some of our activities will take some planning, like making sure Santa will be at the mall when the ornament reads "go visit Santa Claus," or making sure I have all the ingredients for baking cookies. I want to be sure that all of our activities are do-able the day that Drew pulls the ornament from the tree.

My hope is that we can all gain a little perspective, and begin a life-long appreciation for what we have, as well as being acutely aware of how much we have to give.

It's a start, anyway.

And I'll admit that while I'm so looking forward to what the boys will learn, I also know how much it is going to teach me, as well.

{OH, by the way, I have four more days to fill! I've run short on ideas...so please share, especially those that serve someone else in some way!}

{I hope to post our daily Advent actions, but you know how that goes. I'll post when I can!}