This year I have fallen completely for Christmas, I am going to be so organised this month and savour every moment of December this year. So when Becky, Jen, Amanda and I decided on Advent Calendars for this month’s Style Challenge, instead of rolling my eyes, and muttering it was ‘still November’, I was all over it. I found some gorgeous calendars and lovely advent calendar activity ideas. I also have one to giveaway.
In my 80s childhood advent calendars were simple pictures, however, I can’t resist an advent calendar you can make your own. Although it means a little bit of preparation, it is a fun ritual that my kids love. Normally our advent calendar just has sweets in, but I’ve been toying with the idea of adding some messages, pictures and tasks too.
I love the simple Hanging Bucket Advent Calendar from House Additions at Wayfair UK (pic above). Anything that hangs rather than taking up limited table space is a very good thing. An even thriftier option is the Santa Peg set, like a mini washing line you can peg notes or wrapped sweets to. You can reuse them year after year and they look more appealing than chocolate advent calendars.
I don’t think I can keep on top of a daily activity for my family, especially now they are at school; Christmas is a busy time, so be realistic or it’s no fun. I like the idea of including fun ideas for things we can do at the weekend as a family.
Advent calendar activity ideas
Activities for the weekend
Write a Letter to Father Christmas
Let’s Buy a Christmas Tree
Decorate the tree
Let’s make Christmas biscuits
Let’s Play a board game together
A little bit of bribery can work wonders…
Treasure Hunt time – if you help write your Christmas cards I will give you a clue as to where the treasure is hiding.
It’s present wrapping day! Hot chocolate and treats when it’s done.
I like the idea of tying in with things we are doing anyway…
Good Luck in your Christmas Show today! Let’s have a treat afterwards?
We’re going to the theatre!
I also love the idea of rituals
Let’s have a mince pie, hot drink and watch a Christmas film
Let’s get your favourite Christmas books out
Christmas Craft Time!
Let’s bake something Christmassy
I think some thoughtful ones are important too
Today I need you to be spies and come home with 3 ideas of what your teacher might like for a present
Time to make a card and present for Grandma!
Let’s make and send a Christmas card to someone who doesn’t get much post
Let’s take everything we don’t need to a charity shop
If you need more ideas, Pinterest is full of advent activity printable.
Do you have an advent calendar tradition in your house?
Why not see what Becky from A Thrifty Home, Jen from Love Chic Living and Amanda from The Ana Mum Diary came up with for this month’s Style Challenge?
Giveaway
Wayfair have a range of advent calendars. I have one German Christmas House Advent Calendar, by Best Season to giveaway, just tell me about your advent calendar traditions in the comments and fill in the rafflecopter to register your entry and claim extra entries. Check out the amazing Prestige Vintage Kitchenware Giveaway too.
a Rafflecopter giveaway
Terms and Conditions There is one prize of a German House Advent Calendar as outlined in the blog post. The prize is non-transferable and no cash alternative is offered. Open to UK residents aged 18 and over, excluding employees and relatives of Wayfair and A Residence. Closing date for entries is 20/11/2015 One entry per person Entrants must log into rafflecopter and comment on the blog. Optional entry methods are to follow on Twitter, Facebook and tweet on Twitter. The winner will be chosen at random from all valid entries The winner will be informed within 1 week of the closing date and will need to respond with a postal address within 14 days or a new winner will be chosen The winner’s name will be available on request This is a joint promotion between Wayfair and A Residence. Entry to this confirms that participants have read, understood and agree to be bound by these Terms and Conditions.
Competitions at ThePrizeFinder – See more at: http://www.theprizefinder.com/content/wooden-house-advent-calendar#sthash.M0XBCJo4.dpuf
I LOVe the bucket calendar!!!
I cross stitched an Advent calendar when I was pregnant with my first son. I hand stitched 24 little felt stockings which can be attatched a detatched from the calendar so each day, we remove a stocking to reveal a cross stitched Christmas surprise! I hand it up every year and buy my children chocolate Advent calendars, our dog a doggie Advent calendar and I treat myself to a Yankee candle Advent calendar!
Ive always had to get a chocolate advent calendar for myself,now i’m older,i just remember how much i enjoyed them as a child x but i love the bucket calendar x
I believe that nobody is too old for an advent calendar, last year alongside our chocolate calendars I did a Christmas book calendar with a different Christmas book wrapped up each day
We have the simple chocolate calenders, but my boys are 3yrs old now and i’m looking for something better x
I do an activity calendar every year with my girls and last year i made a brand new handmade calendar for the girls 🙂 http://www.gingerlillytea.com/2014/11/a-handmade-advent-calendar.html
we usually just get the chocolate advents
would love a different bottle of wine everyday threwout December 😉 lol x
We leave a note in some days where to get your advent gift you have to do a treasure hunt.
We usually get lego ones – i like the idea of wrapping up a 24 books though!
We just usually have the chocolate ones, but would love to have a book one!
Just gorgeous Penny – its got me feeling festive x
It doesn’t feel like Xmas until u get an advent calender and this one looks greatx
We go crazy on advent calendars… a fabric one with random chocs or sweets in for each girl (one bought by my mum, one by MIL), then a Playmobil one for last couple of years too…. occasionally MIL buys the shop choc ones too!! This year they’ve requested a Shopkins one… so I need to get the wooden one to make it happen 🙂
Both my daughters get a calendar on 1st December
We always have a chocolate advent calendar. I would love to win the German House Advent Calendar as my Husband was born in Germany and it would make his day as he remembers a similiar one that he had as a child at his Grandma’s with fond memories x
I always get my mum one, try to get a different type each year.
As well as the usual chocolate variety we always had the daily ritual of lighting the advent candle and snuggling up whilst it burned that day’s wax
I made a felt advent calendar years ago. It comes out every year and i fill the pockets with different surprises
we always have a chocolate one i’m 38 and still do
We always do nice chocolate advent calendars 🙂
For us Advent calendars are always about chocolate! I love the German House Advent calendar – our tree is decorated with wooden German decorations but I’d never seen this House until now.
Everybody in our house gets an Advent calender,regardless of age
Its just the kids normally, with chocolate
we always have the choc advent calendars that are nut free so they are a treat in our house
W e just have the ones with pictures in!
All my Children and Grandchildren have chocolate calenders
We just have standard chocolate calendars at the moment but would love to do something a bit different.
I love your suggestions for activity ideas Penny, especially the thoughftul ones. Now that I have an empty nest I don’t have any advent rituals, but you have inspired me to start one and an activities one just for me. Thank you!
we always have chocolate advents for the little ones, but I would like to start a different type for them, something more creative. I really love the bucket idea
What lovely ideas Penny, its not all about the chocolate (or liberty pamper items) I suppose! 😉
I make my own every year. This year will be a mash up of vintage game pieces and peg board 🙂
We have a wooden one now that we plan to start using this year, and every year from now on.
I buy a cadburys one every year
We have a wooden calendar for my son & put a couple of Lego bricks in each drawer which, eventually, make a set. I’d love to win this calendar for my daughter and do something similar.
I’d like to start a love letter advent calendar
I have been after one like this for ages, I’d love to fill it with homemade truffles and little plastic animals for the kids 😀 xx
I made my partner an advent the first Christmas together – and stuck with it. individually wrapped chocolates with dates on, and a bottle of his favourite whiskey with the dates marked along the side in glitter pen showing where he is allowed to have up to.
We have a chocolate calendar every year
Chocolate calendar every year
We have a Cadbury one each 🙂
I don’t have one but next year I’d like to make my own.
Normally just the choccie ones
I like to have an advent candle, kept well out of reach of tiny hands though. Lights are magical, just like Christmas, for children of any age…
we have a chocolate calender each every year. I still have one at 38!!
No but open to suggestions
We haven’t got any yet as my kids are only young but we did do the book advent calendar last year and it was great
I’d love to start a tradition where we had a hanging advent calendar like a card holder draped across a wall of the living room! I’d hang either small sacks of stcokings on with a number on and a small treat in each!
The children have always had a chocolate advent calendar every year just as I did.
my children always had advent calanders, now my grandaughter has one!
we just do chocolate ones
My boys get a Lego calendar every year!
When I was little we had a ‘pop-up’ advent calendar which had a scene of the nativity inside which I loved. No treats or chocolate inside just Christmas images behind every window & double doors on the 24th to mark Christmas Eve. Unfortunately it wore out in my teenage years which I was very sad about. Now we just get chocolate advents calendars for the kids as they are older & it’s what they like.
We usually make our own advent calendar using a small Christmas tree an paper baubles filled with nice things 🙂
I would want to start putting little chocolates in small pockets that would be on the Christmas tree and as we’re getting closer to Christmas we would have turns eating each individual small chocolate
wow this is so awesome and unique. I love different things.
Every child gets their own chocolate calendar – opened first thing each morning
We usually have a chocolate advent calendar but I would love to treat myself to the Yankee Candle advent calendar as they look fan.
i usually buy a ready made cardboard advent , but this year im wanting a reusable one for the kids x
I love the look of the Bucket Calendar … we have a chalk board that the kids count down on it hangs on the back door … Fab Giveaway ♥♥ Fingers Crossed ♥♥
We have a snowman with pockets which i fill with treats each year
none xx
My mum made one for me and my partner with 24 individually cross-stitch embroidered bags that comes out every year.
I would like to start a tradition with my almost two year old where we put treats or small change in the advent pouches / boxes.
Having a freshly cooked pork sandwich on Christmas Eve .
I always get the children a chocolate advent calendar and this year my son wanted the lego one too
I love the traditional advent calendars with just the pictures – they remind me of when I was little x
We have a mix of arty challenges, chocolate and ‘thought for the day’ type things
Love this house to start a tradition with my 2 year old grandson
Like to have an Advent Calendar each year. Youngster in family gets an Advent Calendar as a Gift.
we always buy cadburys
We always have a non chocolate one for the morning and a chocolate one for the evening this would be brilliant!
my kids are 29, and 21 and have both left home, but both have an advent calendar here, and would be upset if they didn’t!
the nieces & nephews loved them, had to get the pocket type ones to fit the treats in as there were 6 of them visting!!
We always have a christmas curry on Christmas Eve
We always have several advent calendars
I buy a Chocolate Advent Calendar for each of my Grandchildren and they have a wooden one each at home
As kids we always left the 24th chocolate from the advent calendar out for Santa along with a mince pie and a glass of milk. I did it with my own children when they were little too.
We have 24 positive Christmas challenges in our advent calendar (e.g. help someone today, tell 10 different people a joke, make someone a present, etc) It’s great fun.
We have no advent calendar tradition in our house but would love to start one with my twins
I have an advent calendar in my classroom and each day a child nominates one of their classmates to get a chocolate.
I always get my wife an advent calendar.
We have a similar little house but can’t put much in it, would love to win so kiddies have one each
When the kids were younger we used to ligt an Advent candle and sing carols each night before n=bed
I get the beauty calendars
always a chocolate advent – as a kid i used to cheat and eat ahead!!!!
I still buy my sons an advent calendar, even though there in there 20s.
Eat the chocolate before breakfast
We light a candle every day for advent
We always have chocolate advents
I have always taken the easy chocolate a day cardboard advent calendar route but what I’ve always wanted to do is have a reusable advent calendar that we could fill with little notes about what we’ve enjoyed, what’s been good, etc through the year (plus a little chocolate!).
I would love a “do something new” advent calender, where every day I challenge myself to do something new. whether that be funny, brave or romantic
My little daughter is 3 and I gave her first advent calendar last year. each day had something to do with a treat but no sweets. she had hair bobbles, sticker, crafts etc.
Love the idea of a book advent calendar.
I want to start Elf on the shelf but think this year with a newborn is not the year to start it. We have a chocolate advent calendar but I have always wanted one I could fill myself.
we all have chocolate ones
Would like this for granddaughter Alice would fill it with treats
Wooden tree advent with chocolate snowballs in each one xx
Chocolate calendar, candle and each day we make a decoration
We always have an advent calendar as a countdown to the big day, going to do this for my little boy now as well , now we are a family x
I always buy a chocolate advent calendar for my children but love the bucket calendar very much, such a great idea x
For Advent my children receive a small item that means something to them and they open these together..
I just used to have advent calendars with pictures when I was a kid…so I’ve now started a new tradition of having a chocolate advent calendar each year 🙂
My Husband’s Mum always buys him an Advent Calendar – he’s 48 this month. Bless! I eat most of the chocolates though so it’s a win/win 😉 .
I started buying mine a lego advent calendar about 2 years back. they love getting a new piece to add to their collection everyday and it gives them a little something to keep them excited about Christmas everyday 🙂
When we make the Christmas cake everyone in the house takes a turn to stir the mixture & make a wish.
You are never to old for advent calenders.
I would prefer an OPI nail polish one now though rather than chocolate.
we have chocolate ones but I love the idea of book ones x
So far we have only had the chocolate advent calendars. I would love to have one that I can fill with treats of my choice and refill every year.
Love a nice advent and so do the kids
we have chocolate ones
Obviously we will have chocolate advent calendars but i like adding things to the tree in our kitchen every day – maybe a homemade decoration, a little handwritten wish or even a present we’ve wrapped together and placed under the tree.
I normally have chocolate ones but would love to start a cosmetic one this year x
We always get a chocolate one for every family member. We have a small fabric one and the stocking ate too small for anything but chocs but every few days I write a note with a treat on it like a day out or a film afternoon. Useful to fill up dark winter days!
we just get a chocolate advent
I’d love to start a advent with my son as he’s just turned two and would love it on the run up to Xmas so I love the house calendar where you can put your own treats in it for him. So would love to win
We always have a chocolate one, but it would be really nice to have one to keep and refill every year with nicer gifts inside.
This year will be the third year we will be doing the advent books twenty four books wrapped and numbered with one opened after bath time each evening for a special bed time read, I buy the books throughout the year so it’s not a huge expense they are then enjoyed right through the year
I have always been absolutely obsessed with advent calendars! When I was little I used to just have the picture ones – but every year I would keep the ones from the previous year and just close the doors again so I could re-open them! At one point I must have had about 15 dotted around the house. I still buy my boys one of these each every year to keep up the traditional side of things!
They also have a fabric hanging calendar each, which I pop a sweet or chocolate into each night for them to take out the next morning!
I sometimes buy them the little cheap chocolate ones but to me these don’t really have the same excitement factor.
In all I just love advent calendars!
This will be my grandson 1st christmas and i would love to buy him an advent calender that he can use every year.
I am attempting to make my own version of a playmobil advent calender this year to save some money. I really hope my LO will be convinced its as good as the shop bought one. However we have already go the chocolate one ready to go. For older children its great to be able to put messages in the buckets or the house advent calenders.
we always have the chocolate one, we did look at the wooden ones this years but a little the price tag was a little out of our range
I want to sew one for my kids like I had as as a child, and an one for me and my partner for adult treats x
we always get chocolate calenders but would love this to put my own things in thankyou
Just a cheap chocolate advent calendar but this year they have a lego one too.
Love the LEGO ones but they’re so expensive – have only managed these one year. Other than that it’s normal chocolate ones. Would love a DIY one like this prize though!
We all have our own chocolate advent calendars and also an old felt one with little pockets in. Its quite tatty now, so maybe time for a new one.
We generally have a candle that we burn and my little boys have a traditional picture advent calendar each. I love the little bucket calendar idea my boys would love that.
We usually have Cadbury ones
My children get the cadbury chocolate calenders
We don’t really have one but this year is all about starting traditions for us
Everyone gets an advent calendar, including the dog. We just have to make sure they don’t get mixed up!
The only tradition here is that everyone gets them! Though the dogs have to share 😉 We don’t stick to a particular type or anything, though they are always chocolate (except the dogs, obviously)
I’d love to start a tradition of making my own so I can personalise them
Choccie ones for us ~~
I like to make an advent calendar for both my little girl & my husband filled with little surprises I know they’ll love.
we have a big reindeer advent calndar which we fill with treat and mini toys
We have a different bottle of wine each night between my husband and I, leading up to Christmas xxx
We hide a chocolate Santa in the sitting room each day.
My kids always had a calendar with pockets so it could have whatever you chose in it
My mum always buys me an advent calendar – I am 42!
We always buy a chocolate advent calendar would love a different one
I’ve always wanted a wooden one but I can never resist the temptation of the chocolate!
Usually we just have the usual cheap chocolate advent calendars, but I’ve seen a lot more variety this year, particularly by reading blogs 🙂
I made my children an advent calendar each from empty match boxes, felt and various trimmings. I loved filling the drawers up each year.
The kids just have a chocolate one each,even though my eldest is now working full time – he says he still wants one this year 8)
My son is 16 now and said he didn’t really want an advent calendar this year – but I know he was so excited that I got him an Avengers chocolate calendar!!
My Mom has a handmade advent calendar which she sewed 20 years ago, and every year she puts it up and fills it with goodies for all the family to enjoy some goodies
We always get the chocolate ones but these are gorgeous!
we all have an advent calendar…. even the dog!!!!! we all open it at the same time everyday (weekends a bit later!!!)
We have an advent candle as well as an advent calendar, although sometimes if we’re out in an evening we don’t have chance to light it so we end up burning through a couple of das in a go. We also have chocolate advent calendars of course! I’d like to start the advent book tradition, I think it’s a great way of getting children to love reading!
always do a chocolate calendar for the children , but I make my own fillings wrapped in foil in a felt hanging version, it could be a sweet, a treat or a promise
I individually wrap 24 books and send them to my niece and nephew for advent. They love having a surprise story each day and they then pass them on to other kids after Christmas.
We all go and choose our calendars and then my eldest son has the job of putting them up, I d love this though, think this would be a lovely tradition to start x
The kids pick their calendars every year and I buy the hubby one.
Firstly I love the German house calendar its unique. In terms of tradition, we have many festive traditions such as decorating the tree together, leaving out gifts for Santa and ‘family time:. As an atheist family our traditions are free from religion and tend to centre around family and children.
We always get the chocolate ones. I like the thorntons ones with a big snowman at the end!
My mum buys me a chocolate one every year. I’m only 50 ……. 🙂
Amazing prize, liked and shared
I never had an advent calendar tradition but I’m going to start one for my little girl putting a mixture of chocolates, toys and pennies in the advent
Our tradition is the pocket calender where the 4 kids have to take turns on the days then they all get a treat on Xmas eve 🙂
The chocolate advents go down very well in our house 🙂
We have a tradition of just the bog standard chocolate ones! Would be good to have a nice one which we could personalise a bit!
Ive always tried to get either the wade ornament crackers or star wars ones. The recent lego star wars advent calendars are great!
Each year we try to put something different into our advent calendars. (@PeanutHog)
We just have the standard chocolate ones! I like the idea of giving a small message with each chocolate (inspirational quote, personal message) to make it more personal but have never actually done it! 🙁
I had a lovely one like this when I was little which my mum filled with surprises. Over the years and through over use it became a broken and had to be thrown away. I would love to do something like this for my kids
the bucket calander looks fantastic what a great idea
We normally have the chocolate advent calendars (with the latest boy band on!!) but wouldnt mind changing the chocolate for little gift notes or promises
Ive always bought a chocolate advent calendar but last year i got toy ones for the children and they loved them but just so expensive. this year we are going to introduce the lef on the shelf
We love advent calendars they all get to pick the one they want and everyday they are allowed to eat there chocolate before breakfast as a treat
All of my children, even now when they are adults, still start their advent calendars of the 1st of December and we then contact each other daily to let everyone know what they found.
I made my own wooden advent calendar for myself and my husband this year. I will be filling the odd numbers with special treats and he will do the same. I’m also going to put a Christmasy thing to do together in each slot. This is the first year we will have done it and I’m hoping will last many many years to come.
We make one every year! And put little toys and chocolate in 🙂 The kids love doing it 🙂
Normally the chocolate ones but I’m going to try and change this as I’d love a real family tradition! Maybe one where the family all open a door with something to share or something to do together! X
I’d like to start putting a little IOU note behind each door….fun before christmas.
We have a felt hanging advent with pockets. Each day has a treat in
Usually have a chocolate advent calendar. Like the idea of rituals though.
All four of us have a chocolate advent calendar
I’d love this wooden one to put little treats in for my little boy William as he is dairy intolerant, and his brother has a choice one don’t want him to miss out
My 7 year old daughter gets a Lego Friends advent calendar every year but we always get the traditional one with the christmas scene and a themed picture behind each door.
My daughter has a chcolate one and a Lego friends but would love to have an old fashioned one like when I was a child with a picture behind each door.
We have an elf that always brings our advent calendar on the 1st.
I made a gorgeous stitched advent calender with 24 little stockings, and every year it got brought out, but we moved last year and we have lost it 🙁
we dont have one, just normally stick to chocolate advents
We all have a chocolate advent calendar but I would love a wooden one filled with either chocolate or decorations for the tree
we normally have chocolate calendars for the kids
we make decorations for the whole house, always a good laugh
My son has a cardboard snowman one and I put little treats in for him, but it’s creased and starting to rip in the corners, I’d love a wooden one for him 🙂
We usually buy chocolate calendars but I would love to have something like this that we could have every year
We have the tradition of wrapping up 24 Christmas stories and then our children open one a night at bedtime for their bedtime story….
We have a wooden advent calendar that has little wooden toys in, and chocolate buttons 🙂
we normally have chocolate ones – Cadbury only!
I have a hand stitched advent calendar made by my nan years ago – its beautiful but no chocolate sadly so we also have chocolate advent calendars – had a greta deal on at tesco and got some mars ones for £1 each 😀
I don’t have an advent calendar tradition of my own… but I do always buy one for the dog!
My mum makes my sisters and I an advent calender every year. I’m 26!
I love the bucket advent calendar, so unique and special
It’s not a tradition as such but for the last two years I have had a beauty calendar, these are becoming really popular and I love opening mine
We are going to try using little boxes for the children
iv always done the traditional chocolate calender, but this year we decided to get my daughter the lego friends advent calender, she is lego mad!
Normal just chocolate ones but I love the bucket ones or the wooden ones
We have always had a tradition that it’s chocolate advent calendars but we also have a Thomas Pacconi wooden advent calendar behind each of the 25 little doors is a small ornament which has a hook to hang on a small ornament Christmas tree which comes with it, it’s so lovely and we’ve done it for years it always looks lovely and the children love taking it in turns to see what each day has , we sometimes sneak little chocolates in too, such a fun way to countdown to Christmas.
I love this, I currently have a string of mittens with the days numbered on them for my son, he gets a variety of things like pencils, rubbers, bits of lego and the odd chocolate on the different days.
We do a reading advent which the kids love and unwrap a christmas themed book each night x
My children get chocolate calenders each year
We don’t have any but I love the book a day advent calendars I have see. Posted online
Kelly Ellen Hirst
We like a different chocolate every day xx
i still remember the excitement of opening my advent calendar when i was young but we never had chocolates in just a picture but these days we all have a advent that we put little gifts in
I still get traditional chocolate advent for the children even now they are older xxx
our family advent calendar is made out of material and we fill it with sweets for the kids!