We are deep into the Advent season, friends. (Only one week left til Christmas!) These special weeks of the year crept up on me and I felt very unprepared. But, thankfully for me, and now for you, it is not too late to celebrate this time of year.
Why Celebrate Advent?
While most people in the world celebrate the actual holidays of Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, as Christians, I think we should most definitely celebrate the whole season of our Lord’s Advent by making the days leading up to those two holy days as special as we can. The church has celebrated Advent for thousands of years so why not continue? Personally, marking the end of the year in this way has helped me celebrate and savor our Savior’s birth much more.
Advent started on November 28th and continues through to Epiphany which falls on January 6th, 2025.
This special time of year is worth celebrating and I especially see the benefits of including your children in the celebration. I am one to never pass an opportunity to make memories and bless each other. Advent is another way to do just that. So, here’s what we’ve been able to do this year to celebrate and I hope you can do some things as well!
Reading Through Advent
There are many ways to mark the Advent season in your home, but one that I am particular fond of is doing daily reading and prayers together as a family. And to make it very easy during advent this year, we are reading through the book O Come, O Come Emmanuel by Jonathan Gibson. He has collected beautiful writings, hymns, and prayers into a daily liturgy to read through. This book has made our Advent celebration much sweeter and I’ve really enjoyed finding the lesser known hymns he includes.
Our Advent Wreath
Each Sunday in Advent is represented by a candle that is lit as you read Scripture and pray. This year, we had our own wreath made of Dollar tree garland and poinsettias and filled with beeswax colored candles. The first two candles are purple and represent Hope and Peace. The third candle is pink and marks the middle of the Advent season and the Joy it brings. The fourth candle is purple and represents Love. The Book of Common Prayer includes specific prayers for each Sunday in Advent that corresponds to the candles to be lit. And if you want to, you can even read the Book of Common Prayer online here! But having all this right in the middle of our table, the candles, the wreath… they have been wonderful reminders of the reason for this season of the year.
Homemade Treats
Most of you probably have a favorite sweet treat in mind when it comes to the Christmas season. Of course you do! One of the best ways to celebrate is with special food. Here are two treats we’ve made to celebrate the season:
Homemade Eggnog
When we lived in England last year (and the two years before), I learned to make my own Eggnog because you cannot buy it in the store over there (it’s strictly American!). But now I don’t think I’ll ever go back to store-bought when I can quickly and easily make it at home. Click here for my recipe!
Gingerbread House
This was the first time we have tried to make a gingerbread house and I’d say it was a hit! My daughter only has a half day at school every other Friday, so we took that afternoon time to cut out our cookie pieces and bake them. Then we plastered everything together with royal icing (a good way to use up egg whites from making the above eggnog) and decorated with Yumearth candies. It was so much fun! I did not make up a recipe for this one as I wanted to make sure the gingerbread was sturdy. So here are the links to what we used:
Here’s the gingerbread cookie recipe and the royal icing recipe.
And this is the free template we used for cutting out the house and instructions to put it together. We chose to do the house they’ve name the “Susie” and I think it looked great (see photos below).
We had so much fun and I hope this becomes a yearly tradition for our family!
It’s Not Too Late
So, don’t give up if you’re wanting to celebrate but haven’t had time for much planning. It’s not too late to do something with your family and you can still make this a special time for everyone.
I’m praying you have a blessed Advent season this year and for many years to come!
