Welcoming Advent into our home...

"The time of Advent that we begin again today returns us to the horizon of hope, a hope that does not disappoint because it is founded on the Word of God. A hope that does not disappoint, simple because the Lord never disappoints! He is faithful!" Pope Francis

Happy First Week of Advent Friends! Are you like us and get super excited when the flicker of light shines from the first purple candle? We love Advent and love using it as a special time to prepare our hearts for the birth of Christ. In the hustle and bustle of Christmas preparations, our parents worked hard to instill in our family a  few Advent traditions.

First we take out our Christmas and Advent books and they all get passed through many hands in the home. A few of our favourites include:

Donkey Bells by Catherine Doherty



The Story of St Nicholas by Julie Stiegemeyer



The Legend of the Candy Cane by Lori Walburg



The Other Wiseman by Henry Van Dyke



And of course: A Christmas Carol by Charles Dickens. John and I are studying it together and Dicken's classic words never grow old.



Second: Our parents take out the Advent wreath and make it a prominent place on our table. Our Mama clips real evergreen boughs and ties them with the ribbon.

Third: Upon the lighting of the candle, we have a special prayer and reflection time before dinner. For example on the first Sunday, our Dad blesses the wreath, we read the readings of Isaiah and when we were young, we sang the classic: Light the Advent Candle One

When we were younger, we made Jesse Trees etc and if you are looking for more Advent activities and crafts to do with your children check out the following sites:

Simplekids
Catholicmom
Catholicicing

What about you? Do you have a special Advent tradition? Share with us! We would love to hear from you!