It’s almost that time again! Advent Calendar season – a countdown to Christmas. But in addition to our chocolate countdowns, our family continues to have an activity calendar countdown, something we have had since the kids were babies and it’s a tradition we continue even as they grow (and both are now teens).
If you have younger kids, search ‘advent calendar’ on my blog search bar for previous years, especially 2009-2012ish when the kids were little. We did different activities that were more age appropriate then. This calendar grows with our kids!
The history of the activity advent calendar
It began in 2009 (when I read about it from a fellow blogger here in Ottawa – thanks Andrea!) and since then, it’s become a beloved tradition. I repeat favourite activities each year, add some new ones, and update them based on the age of the kids and our plans.
As with other years, here are some tips I’m sharing about creating your own activity calendar:
a) Don’t put dates on the activities. You may need to switch them up once and a while if something changes, illness hits etc. I copy the activities from this post, paste them into Word, remove the dates and print them. Then I cut them and add them in our calendar holder.
b) Stock up on the stuff you need for each activities like hot chocolate or craft supplies.
c) Check your family calendar and add in activities to the 25 Days countdown list that you already know you’ll be doing – like Santa letters, Christmas tree decorating or family cookie decorating.This list is also created in close consultation with my calendar based on days of the week– some activities can’t be done easily on a weekday so I made sure they were on the weekend.
d) You’ll notice only certain movies make the list. This doesn’t mean we don’t watch others, it just means we don’t have a schedule for them.
—-> What’s most important about this calendar isn’t that you put too much effort into crafting the perfect activity, it’s that as a family you come together and take a few moments each day to celebrate and spend time doing something together that is festive, fun and family oriented.
Some days, if we get too busy, we skip.
That’s probably why I love it so much.
This calendar doesn’t work if you stress about it!
Remember, search ’25 days of Christmas’ or advent activities on my blog search bar you’ll find all our other years so if you have toddlers and preschoolers, you can use some of the ideas we had back then.
And again, I explain the singing that you will see on this list:
You’ll notice my list has a few spots where the activity for the day is to simply sing a Christmas song. My kids have requested these be removed but nope – they stay. I keep joking that I will add more. They find the activity boring and not necessary. But I keep them in there. Why? Because honestly, some days are busy, or tiring, or our plans change, or I’m just overwhelmed so having a few ‘freebie’ days means that we still get to do an activity, but it’s extremely simple. It works! And now it’s a running family joke.
As much as I love the holidays, I’m also a big fan of slowing things down, so when it gets to be too much, give yourself permission to skip a day (or just sing a song!) There are no real rules here. Focus on the fun, and time together.
I’m updating last year’s calendar because it will be fairly similar! But again, everything is decided based on existing plans, where the weekends fall, school events etc. I may still update this as we get into December and new activities and ideas appear!
2023 Activity Advent List #25daysofChristmas Countdown
- Write letters to Santa (even with no believers in the house, this tradition stays alive!)
2. Decorate the Christmas Tree (hoping to get it on December 1 as it’s a real one)
3. Watch a Muppet Christmas Carol, the Holiday Movie Kick Off
4. Holiday Scavenger hunt around the house
5. Write a special Christmas greeting to your sibling and mail it to them (it will be a nice read when they receive it! And yes, these go in the mail with stamps!)
6. Hot Chocolate Bar
7. Christmas Craft
8. Sing Jingle Bells
9. Visit Cumberland Vintage Village of Lights
10. Gingerbread House Decorating
11. Play Holiday Who Am I?
12. Make a list of ten things you are thankful for this year.
13. Sing Frosty
14. Visit Taffy Lane!
15. Dessert for Supper, Supper for Dessert
16. Visit the Lansdowne Christmas Market
17. Decorate Christmas Cookies
18. Sing Rudolph
19. Make a donation to the local food bank
20. Hot Chocolate Bar
21. Play Family Christmas Charades
22. Bring in snow and make maple taffy!
23. Sing We Wish You a Merry Christmas!
24. Unwrap one present from under the tree (mom and dad pick!) [reader note: This is always pjs lol]
25. It’s Christmas Day. Remember you have a family who loves you. And that’s the most important gift of all.
