The first of December. It takes so long to get here, edging along slowly through October until about halfway through November and then, boom! It’s December the first. A couple of years ago, two years running, I ran a Craft Advent on this little blog of mine, where I posted every day through Advent (although, officially Advent started yesterday, the first Sunday of Advent. Anyway!) This year I am doing so again, but throughout December you will also be delighted with guest posts from some of my favourite bloggers who endlessly inspire me: Sadhbh from Where Wishes Come From, Helen from The Busy Mamas, Eithne from Cardroom Delights, Christine from Awfully Chipper, Jane from That Curious Love of Green and Sinead from Crafty Fun kids, Naomi from Dr How’s Science Wows and Jill from Properfud.
This is going to be SO EXCITING!!!
So to start us off, I have a simple Advent Calendar idea. I designed “chalkboard tags” as a **free** printable!
All you have to do is download here: Advent 1 Tags; print on white card, and cut out each tag. With a hole punch, punch a hole in the top where there is a white mark. Then, with some ribbon, string each tag.
On the back of each of ours, I plan to write a prompt, or a treat for the day (ideas: make cookies, post a hug, have a Christmas movie night, have a board game night etc. It can be really, really simple; they are usually most fun!) I’m not sure about your house, but plans change fairly quickly here, so I intend to write the prompts/treats the night before when I’m fairly sure of what will be happening the following day, rather than write them all on the 1st of December and have disappointed/frustrated children (and demented mammy) when the plans that were made weeks before don’t pan out on the given day…
Hang either off your tree, or like a bunting, or as a branch as we have done here.
Enjoy the excitement and anticipation on small ones faces 🙂
(I had just finished photographing and was putting away the camera, delighted I had the tutorial completed and decorated, photographs taken; when a small blonde boy dragged over a chair and began to re-decorate…
I weep for our Christmas tree…)
What a gorgeous idea!!!!! And thank you for officially settling several disagreements on when Advent starts. I’m in the Sunday camp yet family and Oldest Boys school mates insist it is today!
You need to remember this mantra: “The Mammy is ALWAYS right”!!!!!
Great idea, Emily and I really like this craft, it looks fab too…Hmmm…could I write things like ‘takeaway for dinner’ and ‘Mammy with a Martini and the TV to herself by the fire’ and ‘everyone must be really quiet all day’?!!!!
Absolutely Joanna!! That’s the beauty of it 😀
Brilliant idea Emily. We have a wooden house advent calendar which is nearly twenty years old. When the kids were small and there were up to eight of them it was too expensive to buy them each those chocolate treat ones they craved. Instead I hid eight small jellies or smarties etc and gave them each a cryptic clue and they had to go find them in the kitchen.
They are 23 to 12 and I continue to have to hide sweets to this day. (be careful what you start), although the older two are at college until the weekend.
Tric, sounds like our house! We do a cryptic-clue hunt for Easter eggs also every year, it’s great fun 🙂 I don’t think they would even give a hoot if there was something at the end of it, the thrill, is indeed, in the chase!!
Very creative. And I can emphasize with the littles redecorating your tree or in this case an advent calendar.
I love one of the comments up above that said some of them should reflect alone time for Mommy.