Our 2013 Advent Calendar

Advent calendars have gained popularity over the past several years. Advent marks the beginning of the Christmas season and in Latin means “arrival” which represents the approach of Christ’s birth. The first known advent’s date back several centuries and had a more religious meaning than some we commonly see today.

As a child one of my fondest memories was our Christmas countdown. I get my creativity and craftiness from my grandmother, “Ma”. She handmade a Christmas Bell countdown that hung on the wall along with our other holiday décor. Normally I saw these made with paper links, but ours had chocolate kisses! Each night we would take a kiss until they were all gone...on Christmas Eve. The excitement I felt as a child stayed with me, and when my son was born I couldn't wait until he was old enough to partake in the fun!

When I started looking around at different countdown ideas years ago, there were not a whole lot of things I could find online. Now if you go to websites like Pinterest, type in “advent” and you will be overwhelmed by the number of different images you see. Some seem to be for more decorative purposes, while others are for fun. Advent calendars are for all ages and a great way to have a family tradition that will always be included in treasured memories for years to come.