Chocolate Advent Calendars

Chocolate Advent calendars were first mass produced by Cadbury’s in the 1990’s. Now they are everywhere! I am not a fan of the cheap chocolate and heavily packaged Advent calendars that they produce however.

So I’m always on the lookout for alternative ideas to chocolate Advent calendars for the kids.

What is the purpose of an Advent calendar?

The purpose of an Advent calendar is to mark off the days in the countdown to Christmas day and the arrival of the Messiah, ie. the baby Jesus.

In my day, our traditional Advent calendar was made of card and you opened a window to reveal an image of something related to the birth of Christ - like angels, sheep etc.

It’s a lovely tradition, originating in Germany in the 19th century. But along came the chocolate companies and took it over in the late 20th century.

So what are some non-chocolate Advent calender ideas?

1. book Advent calendar

   either buy or borrow 24 books with or without a Christmas theme. Wrap them in paper and open one each day with the kids and read it. You can even just wrap books you already have at home.

2. kindness Advent calendar

   write 24 kind things the kids can do - keep it simple like give someone a hug or make a donation. Pop them into 24 numbered envelopes and open one each day. A very cheap Advent calendar idea. Thanks to Aoife from PlaywithmeMammy for this idea

3. Sticker Advent Calendar

   The kids get a new sticker each day to complete a picture or pop in a little sticker book. Get festive stickers.

4. Jigsaw Advent Calendar

   Divide a jigsaw up into 24 equal amounts and pop each pile into separate envelopes which the kids open each day and use to complete the jigsaw. This can be a jigsaw you already own or a Christmas-themed jigsaw like this one from the Art & Hobby Shop

5. Photo Advent Calendar

   If you have a lot of time on your hands, you could create an Advent calendar using old photos of the kids - holidays you’ve been on, previous Christmases etc. And they can look at a different one each day.

   There are lots of reusable Advent calendars now available. Here are some things you can put into your reusable Advent calendar.

   • a mix of the above - notes, stickers, photos

   • small chocolates or other food items

   • experiences - go for a hot chocolate, bake a cake together, buy a Christmas decoration

   • Mini cosmetics - samples from the chemist or travel sized shampoo etc.

   • different game or exercise ideas for each day!