Advent Clandar

The count down to Christmas is so exciting for children. I've always bought advent calendars for my kids, but this year, now there's a little one, I decided to make a family one. I went to Michael's and bought 2 packs of these little unbleached cotton sacks. I stamped the numbers on using black paint. I then went in search of a branch or something I could hang them all on. That wasn't too successful as it was too lopsided. I found a metal piece out for trash. It is one of those metal stands to hold an election sign on the lawn (or window, handyman etc companies). It was a bit sharp and rusty so I wrapped it in Jute twine gluing it as I went.

I filled the treat bags with chocolate teddy bears, snowmen, lady bugs, santas etc and hung them from the wire cage. Some I hung on a piece of festive twine so they would hang lower and the rows would sit right. I finished it with a few little ornaments and it can be easily leaned against a wall on the mantle. I am excited to anticipate the little one looking in the bags each morning to find her treat.

Girl Child's sweetie is thousands of miles away. She hasn't seen him in a month and will next see him on December 24th. She wanted to make a countdown calendar for him. She stamped wedding favor boxes with the dates and then filled each box with truffles, santas, snowmen and a few more grown up treats such as miniature chocolate liqueurs. In each box she wrote a little note folded and closed with a tiny clothes peg. 

We had so much fin making these. There are so many ways to create a personalized advent. And far better than those horrible waxy chocolates in the grocery store advents.