Come Emmanuel - Advent Traditions

Each year we light the Advent wreath during evening prayer.

We read a Bible story and hang a Jesse Tree ornament.  We sing a verse or two of O Come Emmanuel.  This year we added Jotham's Journey to our nightly routine.



The Jesse Tree has been a part of our family's Advent preparations for many years now.  It is a blessing each year to read our way through salvation history.  We use this Catholic children's Bible. When our oldest was three, we colored a set of hand-drawn ornaments.  We also hang holy cards of significant feast days during the Advent/Christmas season. (St. Nicholas, Immaculate Conception, Our Lady of Guadalupe, Epiphany....)

We have hung them on the Christmas tree, on a tree branch, over a doorway, on a small pine tree and on the mantle.  In recent years we have participated in two Jesse Tree ornament exchanges.  Families are assigned a specific Bible story/character and then duplicate that ornament for the number of participating families.  Prior to Advent the creations are exchanged.  You are blessed with twenty-five unique and mostly hand-made 3D ornaments.  It is really fun to see the clever ideas!

 

When our two oldest were small, I was convinced that we needed a child-friendly nativity set.  Something beautiful and indestructible.  Something that little hands could touch.  It was a splurge for us, but we have never regretted it.  The figures have been arranged, rearranged, dropped, pounded and even teethed upon.  The figures are hand-painted polymer that looks like hand-carved wood.  Over the years we have added another shepard, angels and some sheep.  Baby Jesus is hidden until Christmas morning.  Mary and Joseph make their journey around the house.  The Kings slowly work their way toward the stable.

Through the years we have added little traditions to our Advent journey.  A few years ago we started an Advent Angel tradition.  At first we each drew a family member's name and then secretly did little acts of kindness for them.  Now our Advent Angel is a small ornament that gets lost passed around the house through the season.  It is fun to walk into you bedroom and find your room picked-up or bed made and see the angel lying on your pillow.  Then you know you have been "tagged" and it is your turn to perform an act of charity.  It is also entertaining to try to find the forgotten angel!



This year we came up with twenty-five activities, one for each day of Advent.  We are drawing one each day from this jar.  It's fun to see what our day's adventure/task/sacrifice will be.

This year the girls have been enjoying Advent Adventure. 

I am exploring the O Antiphons.  What a beautiful tradition.  Maybe next year!

It looks like a lot in print but it all combines to (mostly) peaceful, fun activity that builds an atmosphere of anticipation.  There are a lot of us here at many different ages and stages. This is what we are trying to do (not perfectly) but with the hope that these ideas help us to build a home in our hearts for Christ's real presence.