Advent Wreath
Placing an advent wreath that suits your style on your kitchen table and lighting it every evening for your family meal. We read a scripture verse that corresponds to the week, light the candle, and eat by candlelight. To end our meal, we allowed a different family member every night choose his or her favorite Christmas carol.
Christmas Devotional
Finding a devotional to read as a family for dinnertime, bedtime, or any-ol-time is an easy way to be intentional during December without trying to reinvent the spiritual wheel. Elyse Fitzpatrick has a new one that I am eager to purchase for our family this year, Counting the Days, Lighting the Candles. Christmas Carols for a Kid's Heart by Bobbi Wolgemuth and Joni Eareckson Tada. For kids 4-8 years, Christmas Stories for Bedtime by Renae Brumbaugh.
Fisher Price Nativity
Christmas Classic!!! My kids adored playing with this fun set - just in December to keep it special. My good friend did something cool with her 3 and 1 yr olds this year: When they were prepping to play with the set for the first time this week, she read from Scripture the story of Jesus' birth, and her 3 yr old placed that "figure" in place. Do this each week of December and your little ones will be well-versed (pun-intended) in the true meaning of Christmas.
Books
Here are some favorite titles:
The Tiny Star by Arthur Ginolfi
Christmas in the Manger by Nola Buck and Felicia Bond (toddler book - easy to memorize due to the sing-song nature)
The Pine Tree Parable by Liz Curtis Higgs (tear-jerker, especially when pregnant!)
My First Story of Christmas by Tim Dowley (this one is accurate and actually depicts Jesus as a toddler when the Magi find him!)
One Wintry Night by Ruth Bell Graham (the entire Bible succinctly told, from Fall to Redemption, for older kids - picture/chapter book)
A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens (classic!)
DVDs
Veggie Tales Saint Nicholas - a great lead-in for explaining the legend of Santa Claus to your kids, whether you celebrate with Santa or exclude him from your celebration, we found it's great to inform your kids in a winsome way so they "get" what all the Santa fuss is about and can be empathetic and understanding. Santa Claus has come to town and he's not leaving anytime soon!!!
Max Lucado's Crippled Lamb is so sweet for anyone, and is helpful for any child who feels different.
Little House on the Prairie - Plum Creek and the Christmas They Never Forgot - it is not Christmas in our home without sharing the love of the Ingalls family. Amen?
Buck Denver Asks: Why Do We Call It Christmas? (What's In the Bible series by Phil Vischer - zany and Biblically sound.)
It's Christmas Charlie Brown! - I get chills every time Linus reads scripture.
It's A Wonderful Life - Two of my three have graduated from the 45-minute genre fun animated Christmas specials! We've gotta bring something new to the table this year, and this movie is packed with meaning. Not sure if this will be the ticket, but we're gonna try! (13, 11, 8 years old.)
Music
It's all good! But seriously, one year we realized that our Christmas CDs - good as they were - had become too grown-up in the liberties the artists took with traditional Christmas carol melodies. It was to the point that in church while singing, our kids didn't recognize the songs! Yikes! So, while I'm all about artistry, make sure some of your Christmas tunes are true to the original melody and have clear vocals - your kids really do want to sing along!
Martina McBride has an amazing Christmas CD;
The Christmas Story: Through the Eyes of the Friendly Beasts is adorable for young kids - it's classic carols song by kids with narration from the perspective of the animals in the Nativity!
Sara Groves' O Holy Night is so unique, perfect for late December when you cannot tolerate one more mall-tune.
Joy by Keith and Kristyn Getty is unbelievable; buy it!
Mercy Me's The Christmas Sessions - upbeat and great for parties as secular and sacred unite.
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| Advent Wreath from Pinterest |
