The Hope Chain: 25 Advent Activities

THE ADVENT TRADITION

“Mom, promise me we’ll do Christmas activities this year,” my 16 year old said the other day. I looked at her surprised. “Really? Are you being serious?” I replied. And she was.

Traditions matter, no matter the age. They provide a strong anchor of family identity and also make the season special. They offer a chance for us to break up the monotony of everyday life and infuse fun, connection, and meaning into Christmas.

As parents, we love the idea of traditions and of a fun Christmas activity calendar, but the reality of creating, running, and remembering to do an involved activity every day of December is completely exhausting. Half way (or let’s be real, 3 days) into the project we are already failing and feel like The Grinch mom.   At this point the kids start commenting about our lack of follow through, and it becomes just one more layer of mom guilt.

With this reality in mind, all of the Christmas activities I put out strive to set us, the parents, up for success. They don’t require a ton of time, and the supplies needed are items many of us already have in our homes.

This year I’ve teamed up with 7 other bloggers, who are all personal friends that I adore, to create a unique Advent activity, The Hope Chain. This is one of those old-school link chains, and the activities listed each day only require 15 minutes or less.

The Hope Chain

WHAT IS A HOPE CHAIN?

It is an old school Advent chain with one activity for each day of December leading up to Christmas that promotes fun, connection, and faith.

HOW TO USE IT:

Print + cut the activities into strips. Form the strips into a chain in order (they are numbered). Each day (carefully) tear off the bottom chain as a family and do the activity listed when you have a 15 min. window. Start on Dec 1st and continue for the 25 days of Advent, ending on Christmas day.

SUPPLIES NEEDED

• a printer
• stapler or tape
• The Grinch Who Stole Christmas Book
• a copy of ‘Twas The Night Before Christmas poem
• brownie mix
• green food coloring
• a jar
• one string of Christmas lights for each child
• glitter or a small spray can of gold or silver paint
• one candy cane per person
• hot chocolate
• large marshmallows
• a Sharpe pen
• Christmas cookies
• popcorn
• Christmas candy

CHOOSE YOUR COLORS AND DESIGN:

The activities are the same on each one, just the colors and outside design vary.

If you are visiting from another site, WELCOME!  

This is a place where we bring meaning and fun to the table.  We strive to live well and love deeply.  You can find out more about me here, but really, I’d like to know more about YOU!  Connect with me on social media and introduce yourself.

I invite you to enjoy and download my Christmas ebook that will help you design your holiday season with intention, keeping significance, fun, and rest in mind!

THIS VERSION OF THE HOPE CHAIN GOES WITH THE EBOOK. IT WOULD MAKE A FUN GIFT FOR SOMEONE AT THE BEGINNING OF DECEMBER!