I bought myself a Nook this summer. I had over $100 in reward certificates from Best Buy, and I thought I might like to have it for the portable factor. I've used my Nook a grand total of one time. I bought a couple books, but I just don't like reading off of it. I love the feel of pages turning. I'm old fashioned I guess.
I dream of bookshelves filled with books, old and new. I shop at Goodwill just so I can browse their book collection. Every week I invest a dollar a two in used books.
"Advent is a season observed in many Western Christian churches as a time of expectant waiting and preparation for the celebration of the Nativity of Jesus at Christmas. The term is an Anglicized version of the Latin word adventus, meaning 'coming.'" - Wikipedia
We're having an Advent Calendar of Books. I love starting new family traditions! I'm excited! This has been done before and definitely not original to me. I visited various books stores around town for the past several months and got my collection completed just in time.
Tonight will be our third day for opening and reading our new Christmas books. I know most people will be starting their Advent celebration on December 1st. However, I will be in Mexico for Christmas this year, so our Christmas falls 3 days earlier than most.
I found some wonderful books that I'm so excited to read with my kids! I tried to get a couple fun Christmas stories; the traditional ones with Santa, Rudolph, and other fantasy characters. I worked especially hard to find the majority of the books to be centered on the true meaning of Christmas, Christ and His birth.
Some of the books on our list are:
The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey by Susan Wojciechowski
Come to the Cradle by Michael Card
Arthur's Perfect Christmas by Marc Brown
How the Grinch Stole Christmas Coloring Book by Dr. Seuss
The Star of Christmas by VeggieTales
The Legend of the Christmas Tree by Rick Osborne
The Very First Christmas by Paul L. Maier
All is Well by Frank Peretti
Merry Christmas Stinky Face by Lisa McCourt
The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
The King's Christmas List by Eldon Johnson
The Christmas Menorah's: How a Town Fought Hate by Janice Cohn
Jacob's Gift by Max Lucado
Ordinary Baby, Extraordinary Gift by Gloria Gaither
The Candle in the Window by Grace Johnson
The Velveteen Rabbit by Margery Williams
Why Christmas Trees Aren't Perfect by Richard Schneider
I have to share a couple books we will be doing that are nontraditional Christmas stories. For them there is more involvement then just reading a story.
This Christmas Keepsakes book is such a great idea! You could even make up your own book. I'm going to write in answers for each of my kids, and there are a few pages for Titus and me to do too. It will make for a fun evening!
It has different things to fill out like, Do you have a favorite aunt, uncle, cousin, or other relative who spends Christmas with you? What special gifts or traditions does he or she bring?
Does your family open gifts on Christmas Eve or do you wait till Christmas morning? How did your tradition get started?
Christmas Favorites: Christmas movie, Christmas food, Christmas carol, Childhood toy, Christmas tradition, and favorite thing to do on Christmas Day
Ever peek inside a present and ruin the surprise? Tell your story.
Write a short prayer for your family asking God to bless them during this Christmas season.
When I was searching the books at Goodwill one day, I came upon this Christmas story. I thought it was really neat because it was written by someone living here and they even drew their own simple illustrations. It seems like a good Christmas story, Mr. and Mrs. Claus Celebrate Jesus' Birthday; I have yet to read the story. I wanted to save it for the day we are all snuggled up on the couch during the Christmas season.
Once you have all 24 or 25 of your Christmas books picked out and bought, you wrap them! This makes it a surprise every night. Nobody has any idea what kind of a story you will be reading. It's also really exciting because kids love to unwrap things. It doesn't matter what is inside, my kids love wrapping paper!
For the next month we will be enjoying quiet evenings of relaxing with the family, all snuggled up under a big blanket reading Christmas stories. Titus and I will take turns reading, and he will rescue me when I get tearful and can't make my way through the words. The kids will each take turns choosing and unwrapping our Christmas book for the evening. It's going to be a wonderful Christmas season this year at our house!
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| Grandma read a book to the kids one night! |
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