Planning for Advent: Ideas!

A reader asked me what we are planning for Advent. I know I always appreciate how some blogger-mothers publish their ideas ahead of time, which is a help to the rest of us. The way I post in real time is not much help except for giving mothers an idea for a year later.

So, I will try to dash out a list of my brainstorming, but it would be a post without a lot of links or photos, for lack of time. My ideal is to come back and edit this post with more links as I have time, and then I could copy/paste and refresh this post each year. We shall see! (Please share your favorite resources with me and I'll add them to this blog post.)

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Advent begins on Sunday December 2 this year.

First order of business to do now:

Buy/order a fresh set of Advent candles and an Advent wreath if you don't have one. (Or make one.)

Buy/order an Advent calendar (which really starts on Dec. 1 because it is a count-down to Christmas, independent of when Advent begins). Once we had more than one child, we stopped buying the chocolate calendars and bought the kind with Scripture or pictures in the windows. Then I buy a bag of chocolates to pass out one to each child each day. (I know some families who do not allow chocolates during Advent because Advent is a penitential season.) We will probably also due a purple and pink construction paper chain for the kids to count down because they like it.

This is Advent, not Christmas. We try very hard to celebrate Christmas when the Church says it is actually Christmas--and there is so much to celebrate and do during Advent, it would be a real loss to be celebrating Christmas instead during Advent, and then be "all done" with nothing to celebrate during Christmas itself! Christmas proper is on December 25, there is the Christmas octave (eight days of joyous celebration) ending on the Marian feast (and a holy day of obligation) celebrating Mary's greatest title, Mary, the Mother of God, Jan. 1. There is also "the twelve days of Christmas" (you know the song!), ending on Epiphany, Jan. 6, celebrating the wise men's arrival.

We try not to put up Christmas decorations, including the tree, early. "Early" means different things to different families and we have experimented. I recently heard a neat idea to buy the Christmas tree at the start of Advent and use it as a Jesse tree. Then only on Christmas Eve does one add the Christmas ornaments, thus transforming its purpose! Efficient. (I have in the past pulled out a small faux tree to use as my Jesse tree.) Some people buy their Christmas tree on Gaudete Sunday (third Sunday in Advent, mini celebration), some not until Christmas Eve. We put a purple wreath on the door, not Christmas red until Christmas. We try to listen to Advent music instead of Christmas hymns. I've heard of putting up lights on St. Lucy's day (since she is associated with candles, lucia means 'light') on Dec. 13.

Advent is a penitential season, a miniature Lent, so to speak. In Catholic Church tradition, the day before the highest feasts is usually one of penance and fasting. Similarly, the seasons before the highest holy-days (Easter first in importance, Christmas secondarily) are preceded by an entire season of penance and fasting (Lent and Advent, respectively). So, I try to think of some ways we can make the season penitential for we adults and for the children too. We might add in extra prayers (Mother Church always has formulated ones for the season!), Masses, Eucharistic Adoration, etc., or work on a particular defect of character, or give up some licit goods as a sacrifice or reparation.

Normally we eat dessert only on special feast days and the Lord's day anyway, but at times are lax about that. During Advent we try to tighten our belts and remember not to have desserts except on the special days. We have at least one birthday during Advent, so we celebrate it on the nearest Sunday.

I have a personal habit of picking a spiritual classic book to read during Advent (and Lent). We can do this for children too. At the start of Advent, our collection of Christmas books (classics and Catholic ones; our family doesn't "do" Santa because we find it too much of a distraction from Jesus) is set out in the den so we can spend a lot of time over the month snuggled on the couch, reading them to the children. Also, we recently began reading The Treasure Box series to the children again because it is so spiritually edifying. John had them read to him when he was three or four (the perfect ages) and benefited greatly. A mother-friend of mine told me that she has all her children read them once per year as a form of a "children's retreat." I realized Mary hasn't had them read to her with purpose and in order, so, now at four years old, we began doing so last week.

Children need special guidance in this area of learning penance, usually cutesy ways to get them to do more good and do less bad.
--Fill a creche for Jesus with hay, one piece of hay for each good deed done. Bonus if good deeds done in secret, without bragging.
--Fill a coin jar to give as alms, one coin for each good deed done.
--Similar ideas as above for sacrifices made (e.g., giving up some television or a dessert).
--A friend of mine delivers on St. Nicholas' day to each child her motherly wisdom of what each child needs to work on for mind, body, and soul. It gives them a focus during Advent.

The nativity set will be placed out at the beginning of Advent. We have two sets, both of which can be played with by children. The kids like to move the wise men closer and closer. Baby Jesus doesn't come out until Christmas morning.

SAINT DAYS IN ADVENT

There are some delightful saint days during Advent!

St. Nicholas on Dec. 6 really rings in the anticipatory time before Christmas. We plan have a special breakfast with whatever fancy we can serve on. There are some traditional breakfast foods and cookies shaped like St. Nicholas.

The St. Nicholas Center is superior for providing anything one needs for this holiday. See any of my posts labeled "St. Nicholas."

Immaculate Conception on Dec. 8 (holy day of obligation). See any of my posts labeled "Feast of the Immaculate Conception."

Our Lady of Guadalupe on Dec. 12

St. Lucy on Dec. 13 is a fun feast day with many traditions children love. See any of my posts labeled "St. Lucy."

Pray the O Antiphons Dec. 17-Dec. 23

The Birth of Our Lord on Dec. 25 (holy day of obligation)

BONUS READING

See any of my posts labeled "Advent" for pictures and ideas

"Family Advent Customs" by Helen McLoughlin

An even better post on Advent than mine, written by my friend Julie! I just read her post and thought, why did I even bother writing this post of mine?!

Moving beyond Advent to the end of Christmas: see any of my posts on the Feast of Epiphany