Advent

It's the season of Advent!

Advent (from the Latin word adventus meaning "coming") is a season observed by the church, a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus at Christmas. It is the beginning of the Western liturgical year and commences on Advent Sunday, called Levavi. The progression of the season may be marked with an Advent calendar, a practice introduced by German Lutherans.

While our church doesn't formally observe Advent, we enjoy doing so at home with  readings in the evenings and an Advent wreath (more about wreaths can be found here).

Our wreath is different every year and I usually just use what I have available. This year I have a small (fake) wreath with 4 small white candles surrounding a larger red one in the center. I set it on a round candle tray which I put in the center of a flat basket. It's sitting on our ottoman "coffee table". I think it's the first year we've had it in the middle of the living room, as in years past, there has always been a little one that lovingly threatened to touch, taste, and throw it around like a toy. I miss those days.

We've also used several different resources for our Advent readings in years past as well. One year we incorporated the Jesse Tree into it with homemade paper ornaments the kids colored, and then ended up purchasing Adornaments (which is no longer in print) which is a variation of the Jesse Tree concept. Jeff has looked at several different advent readings over the years, but prefers reading from a small green booklet we bought when the girls were little called Advent and Christmas In Family Worship by Douglas and Amy Hayes. The weeks are broken down into themes: 1- God is the Sovereign Ruler, 2 - The Messages Brought by Angels, 3 - Jesus is the Good Shepherd and 4 The Prophecies of John the Baptist. Each day has a scripture passage, suggested hymn to sing and a short reading.

Last year we added an Activity Advent Calendar just because it sounded fun. I posted about it here. The kids really enjoyed it, so I put it together again this year with only a few changes:

December Advent Activities

1 Set up Playmobil Nativity together and drink hot cider.

2 Play a game together.

3 Watch a Christmas movie.

4 Attend the Ladies Christmas Tea.

5 Drive around to see Christmas lights.

6 Paint toenails Christmas colors.

7 Make an ornament craft together.

8 Enjoy hot cocoa together.

9 Write Christmas notes to grandparents.

10 Watch a Christmas movie with popcorn.

11 Bake lots of cookies for the cookie exchange.

12 Spend time at grandparents house (mom and dad go to MM Couples Christmas party).

13 Read a Christmas book together.

14 Make a craft ornament together.

15 Attend co-op Christmas party.

16 Celebrate Christmas with grandparents.

17 Make candy cane gifts for friends.

18 Listen to Christmas music and drink tea while preparing for trip.

19 Hand out candy canes at church.

20 Write notes to Mommy and Daddy.

21 Make homemade gift tags together.

22 Read the Christmas story and open group gift.

23 To grandmother's house we go!

24 Wrap gifts and put letters in stockings.

25 CHRISTMAS DAY!

On the recommendation of a friend, this year I purchased Come, Thou Long-Expected Jesus: Experiencing the Peace and Promise of Christmas by Nancy Guthrie and will be using it for my personal readings. It looks very good, and I'm eager to start reading it tomorrow. It has 22 readings (seems like it should be 25).

I'd love to hear about the traditions you and your family observe this time of year!