Holiday Season

 We're back. But more on that later!

This year's holiday season is upon us and with everything going on in the world we have to get a little more creative to bring the sparkle for our little ones. This year is a great year to get back to making holiday chains out of recycled paper and a little scotch tape and spending more time snuggling and less time stressing. With holiday budgets having to be watched a little more closely every penny counts when making your holiday purchasing decisions.

One of my favorite holiday traditions is the advent calendar. The only reason I am bringing this one up so early - it's not even Thanksgiving yet! - is it's important to start your Advent calendar on the first day of December. That means a little planning ahead. The advent calendar gives our family a chance to all come together and at least once a day talk about the real meaning of the season and at the same time getting a little surprise each and every day.

One of our family's favorite things to do is get together and build something with Legos. One year we built the Lego Christmas Village and that has become a center piece of our holiday decorations. Invariably we have to rebuild it every year so that just adds to the fun. So, with that in mind, over the past several years our go to advent calendars have been the LEGO advent calendars. I typically pick them up early on at Costco and they usually sell out quickly. You can also find them on Amazon but you have to watch the shipping times so it arrives on time.

Last year the 4 year old and the 1 year old were able to share in the glorious experience of the advent calendar. But this year the 2 year old is much more aware of what is going on and her particular interests are not really wrapped up in the lego experience. The now 5 year old is ALL about the Legos so that was easy finding his advent calendar. But then I saw this cutey and wanted to share it with all of you. One of the favorite activities for the 2 year old is Bath Time. So this advent calendar is perfect for that kid who adores bath time and rubber duckies. Rubber Ducky Advent Calendar! Brilliant.

Last year I had a Little People advent calender that on Christmas Day becomes a full creche scene. It's adorable. The only thing is those little people are now so scattered I have to either start again or work around the few pieces I can find. So this is why I think the rubber ducky calendar is perfect. Because if one of those ducks go wandering it really won't be that big of a deal.

As we have learned from Dr. Suess and the Grinch Who Stole Christmas, the holiday isn't about the wrapping or the bows or the gifts. It's about the time we spend together. Over the next few weeks we'll be highlighting your family traditions and all the things that make these days so special for our little ones and ourselves. 

Thank you for being patient with us. Glad to be back in the embrace of this wonderful community.