Family Tradition | Ornament Advent Calendar
Post by Becca of CAKE
The Christmas before we got married, people began giving my husband and I the ‘special’ ornaments. I’m sure you have them in your family too. The ones that include photos, engravings and old favorites- added to some of our own, which in our case involves a wide variety of special woodland critters.
So several years ago when looking for an advent calendar for my daughter, I decided to begin a new family tradition and create an ornament advent calendar. I gathered up our most special ornaments and placed them in the pockets of our advent. I bought this advent calendar a few years ago from the Land of Nod because it has nice roomy pockets – it’s been a perfect addition to our holiday home.
At the beginning of the month while decorating the tree, I fill each pocket with our special family ornaments and each morning until Christmas my daughter (and eventually my son when he’s old enough) pull one ornament out to place on the tree. I help her with the fragile ones, but also try to fill it with some of our softer critters, like these new ones I just ordered from Land of Nod. So darling.
Caitlin loves this tradition and never lets me forget a day. It makes her feel so special to add the favorite ornaments to our tree, and it’s a great family conversation starter, sparking memories of where each ornament originated.
In the past I’ve been a bit particular about our tree decor, but starting this tradition has a been great for me too – I’ve loosened up and allowed our tree to become the cozy hodge podge it is (colored lights and all). Someday when the kids are older I’ll probably revert back to my minimalist ways, but if I’m being honest, I’ve become sentimental about the added character that comes with having a family friendly tree and the traditions to go with it. Happy Holidays to you and yours!
Becca Gorski lives in the SF Bay Area, is a working mother of two, and moonlights as an occasional designer / blogger / celebration maker. You can find her creative ideas on CAKE. | events + design, and her line of merry happy party printables on Etsy.