Family Traditions...

This will be our fourth Christmas in Charlotte. Prior to that we spent Christmas Eve and Christmas day scurrying around back and forth between all of our different family members. (Jason has enough family to keep us busy for the whole MONTH of December :-) With not having family here, we have tried hard to make traditions that we can celebrate each year with just us! Thankfully, I didn't have to get too creative...I just stole them from my childhood!!! (Thanks Mom and Dad!)

Advent Calendar

My mom made this calendar for us when we were kids. Each day has a different object that relates to Jesus' ministry somehow. Then we read the passage of Scripture that it correlates to. This year my mom gathered all the supplies needed to stock the calendar and printed out all the little cards that go in each pocket! (If left up to me...I probably would NOT have been organized enough to have it ready by December 1st). The kids love going to to the calendar each night to see what they might pull out!!

Advent Wreath

Technically, this is not a wreath...but I did place the candles in somewhat of a circle. For each week in December there is a candle lit...the candles are Hope, Promise, Light, Love and the final candle lit on Christmas Day - Christ. We have the same book my parents used when I was a kid. As Jason is reading the devotional...I can almost imagine my dad reading and all of us kids sitting around watching the candles burn!

Advent Candle

This is our newest tradition! Our sweet friends, the Vails, lovingly passed on their advent candle to us this year. The candle is marked for the 25 days of Christmas. Each night we light the candle and watch as it gets closer and closer to Christmas day!

We are definitely counting down the days until Christmas...and in so doing...we are celebrating who Christ was and is today!!! Merry merry CHRISTmas!!