Advent is a meaningful season for many families, a time to prepare for the celebration of Christmas in a thoughtful and spiritual manner. It’s a period that encourages us to slow down, focus on what matters, and strengthen our connections with one another.
For families who celebrate Advent, there are numerous creative ways to make the season special and bring its traditions to life. Below, we’ll explore various ideas for celebrating Advent as a family, ensuring that the true spirit of this important time remains alive and meaningful in your home.
What is Advent?
Before diving into specific ideas, it’s helpful to understand what Advent is all about. Advent is the period of four weeks leading up to Christmas, beginning on the fourth Sunday before Christmas Day.
It’s traditionally a time of anticipation, reflection, and spiritual preparation for the celebration of Jesus Christ’s birth. Families mark this special season with activities that build a sense of anticipation and deepen their appreciation for the meaning of Christmas.
Thirteen Tips for Celebrating Advent as a Family
1. The Advent Wreath: A Symbol of Hope
The Advent wreath is one of the most recognizable symbols of the Advent season. With four candles (and sometimes a fifth for Christmas Day), it serves as a visual reminder of the progression of time and the growing light that symbolizes hope.
How to Use the Advent Wreath as a Family Activity:
- Weekly Candle Lighting: Each Sunday, gather as a family to light the next candle in the Advent wreath. As you do, read a passage from the Bible or share a family reflection about hope, love, joy, or peace—the traditional themes of each Advent week.
- Decorate Together: Involve the children in making or decorating an Advent wreath. You can use natural items like evergreen branches, pinecones, and holly to create your own.
- Reflections with Candles: Encourage every family member to share something they are grateful for or hopeful about during each lighting. It’s an opportunity for everyone to reflect and grow together spiritually.
2. Advent Calendar Activities
Advent calendars are not just about counting down the days to Christmas; they’re a fantastic tool for creating memorable experiences as a family. Consider going beyond the typical chocolate-filled variety and try these creative alternatives:
- Activity-Based Advent Calendar: Instead of little treats, create a calendar that has a special family activity for each day. These could include baking cookies, watching a Christmas movie, or making homemade decorations.
- Acts of Kindness Calendar: Fill each day with ideas for small acts of kindness. Examples include leaving a thank-you note for your mail carrier, donating gently used clothes, or baking cookies for a neighbor. This helps emphasize the giving spirit that Advent embodies.
- Daily Scripture Reading: Add a daily Bible verse or inspirational message that ties into the Advent themes of hope, love, joy, and peace. Gather together to read and reflect on the verse each day.
3. Create an Advent Prayer Routine
Prayer is a central part of the Advent season, providing a time for reflection and gratitude. Establishing an Advent-specific prayer routine can be a powerful way for families to spiritually connect.
- Morning or Evening Prayers: Set aside time each day for family prayer, either in the morning before school and work or in the evening before bedtime. Focus on themes of gratitude, anticipation, and hope.
- Advent Prayer Jar: Write down prayer requests and hopes for the coming year on slips of paper. Place them in a jar and, each day, take one out and pray for it together as a family.
- Prayers Around the Wreath: When lighting the Advent wreath candles, include a prayer that reflects the week’s theme (hope, love, joy, peace). Make it a moment of unity that brings everyone closer.
4. Family Craft Projects for Advent
Crafting together is a wonderful way to celebrate the season while creating lasting memories. Advent crafts can be simple yet deeply meaningful, providing tangible reminders of the season’s significance.
- Make Homemade Ornaments: Create homemade ornaments as a family, using materials like salt dough, paper, or natural elements. Each ornament could represent a different aspect of Advent or the Nativity story.
- Build a Nativity Scene: Constructing a Nativity scene can be a wonderful way to help younger children understand the Christmas story. You can use clay, wooden pieces, or even felt to make the figures. Each day, add a new piece to the scene to keep building anticipation.
- Advent Paper Chain: Create a paper chain where each link represents one day until Christmas. On each link, write a thought, prayer, or positive action for the day. As you remove each link, take time to reflect on its message.
5. Advent Music and Songs
Music is an integral part of Advent, helping to evoke the emotions and themes of the season. Incorporate music into your family Advent celebrations in the following ways:
- Advent Hymns Sing-Along: Spend an evening singing traditional Advent hymns or Christmas carols together. Hymns like “O Come, O Come, Emmanuel” can help everyone focus on the anticipation aspect of Advent.
- Create an Advent Playlist: Make a playlist of Advent-themed songs and Christmas carols. Play this music during family time, whether you’re decorating the house, crafting, or eating dinner together.
- Instrumental Fun: If your family plays instruments, make music together. Have each member contribute by playing or singing a piece related to Advent or Christmas.
6. Acts of Service as a Family
The Advent season calls for generosity, kindness, and service. Consider using this time to teach children about compassion through family service projects:
- Donate as a Family: Go through closets and find clothes, toys, or household items to donate to a local charity. Involve your children in the process of selecting items and explain who will benefit.
- Volunteer Together: Choose a day during Advent to volunteer at a local soup kitchen, shelter, or community center. This hands-on experience can help children understand the importance of giving.
- Neighborly Goodwill: Bring holiday treats or small gifts to neighbors, especially those who might be elderly or live alone. Acts like these help foster a sense of community and kindness.
7. Storytelling and Reading During Advent
Stories have a powerful way of bringing Advent themes to life. Reading together as a family can be both educational and spiritually enriching.
- Read the Nativity Story: Set aside time to read the Nativity story from the Bible, breaking it into parts to read throughout the Advent season. This helps maintain a sense of anticipation and emphasizes the true meaning of Christmas.
- Advent Storybooks: Many books focus on Advent themes, such as “The Advent Storybook” by Laura Richie. Choose stories that convey the themes of hope, peace, joy, and love.
- Create Your Own Advent Story: Encourage family members to write or tell their own stories that revolve around the themes of Advent. This can be a fun and imaginative way for children to connect with the season.
8. Baking and Cooking Traditions for Advent
Baking and cooking together can create special Advent memories, and certain traditional foods are perfect for this season.
- Bake Christmas Cookies: Dedicate a day to bake Christmas cookies as a family. Allow children to help measure ingredients, stir, and decorate. Consider making enough to share with friends or those in need.
- Make an Advent Recipe Book: Compile a list of favorite holiday recipes and spend the Advent season cooking them together. This can be a beautiful tradition to pass down through generations.
- Special Sunday Dinners: Make each Sunday of Advent special by cooking a family-favorite meal. Discuss what Advent means to each family member over dinner, creating meaningful conversations.
9. Advent Devotional Time
Incorporating devotional time into your Advent celebrations can help the whole family connect with the spiritual significance of this period.
- Family Devotional Book: Choose an Advent devotional book that is age-appropriate for your family. Many devotional books include short, daily readings designed to help children and adults reflect on the deeper meaning of the season.
- Jesse Tree Tradition: The Jesse Tree is an Advent tradition where ornaments are hung on a tree to represent the lineage of Jesus. Each day of Advent, add a new ornament and read the related Bible story, beginning with creation and culminating in the birth of Jesus.
10. Outdoor Activities to Celebrate Advent
While Advent is often focused on indoor, cozy traditions, outdoor activities can also play a part in celebrating the season.
- Nature Walks and Reflection: Go on a family nature walk and reflect on the beauty of creation. Discuss themes like hope and renewal, and perhaps collect natural materials for Advent crafts.
- Stargazing Nights: On a clear night, spend time stargazing. Talk about the star that guided the wise men to Bethlehem and reflect on the symbols of light and hope that are central to Advent.
- Visit a Nativity Display: Many communities set up outdoor Nativity scenes during Advent. Visit a few as a family and talk about the story they represent, helping children visualize the Christmas narrative.
11. Emphasizing Family Quality Time
One of the most important aspects of Advent is spending intentional quality time together as a family. Here are some ideas to bring everyone closer during this season:
- Family Game Nights: Dedicate one night a week to playing games as a family. Choose games that require teamwork or involve festive themes to promote bonding.
- No-Tech Night: Designate one night a week as a “no-tech night” where everyone puts away their electronic devices and spends time together. Play board games, do puzzles, or simply sit together and talk.
- Family Gratitude Jar: Throughout Advent, encourage everyone to write down things they are thankful for and add them to a “gratitude jar.” Read them all together on Christmas Eve as a reminder of the blessings of the season.
12. Reflective and Spiritual Practices for the Whole Family
Advent is also a wonderful time to introduce reflective practices that can help family members connect spiritually.
- Daily Reflection Questions: End each day by asking reflective questions, such as “What made you feel joyful today?” or “What are you most hopeful for?” This can help children learn to be mindful of their thoughts and emotions during this special time.
- Create a “Blessings List”: Work together to create a list of all the blessings your family has experienced throughout the year. Display it somewhere prominent to remind everyone of the spirit of gratitude.
13. Make Time for Family Tradition
Creating Advent traditions that are unique to your family can make the season even more meaningful. Consider these ideas:
- Christmas Tree Blessing: Before decorating the Christmas tree, gather around it and offer a family blessing or prayer. Talk about the significance of the decorations and what they mean to each of you.
- Advent Family Photo Album: Each year during Advent, take photos of your activities and create an Advent family photo album. This is a wonderful way to look back on past celebrations and remember the joy of the season.
- Christmas Eve Box: On the night before Christmas, have a special “Christmas Eve Box” that contains things like pajamas, hot cocoa mix, a Christmas book, or a movie. Make it an annual tradition to enjoy what’s inside together as a family.
Resurrection Lutheran School in Cary
Celebrating Advent as a family offers an opportunity to slow down, reflect, and create meaningful memories while emphasizing the true spirit of Christmas. Whether it’s through lighting the Advent wreath, singing songs, giving to others, or simply spending quality time together, each activity brings its own joy and significance to the season.
If you’re looking for an environment that fosters a strong sense of community, character, and spiritual growth for your child, consider Resurrection Lutheran School in Cary.
Our school provides a nurturing, faith-based education for preschool through eighth-grade students, with an emphasis on academic excellence and community engagement. We’d love for your family to be a part of our community. Contact us to schedule a visit today.
