Holiday Gift Guide 2012 #1- Holiday Countdown

Holiday Gift Guide #1

Holiday Countdowns

Happy Holidays!! can you believe that it's another season of traditions, family, holidays, a new year, gifts and gatherings!? Oh, and lets not forget a holiday gift guide from yours truly.

Today is marks the first night of Hanukkah. Happy Hanukkah to those that are observing. May you have a joyous season :)

I have some guest bloggers lined up, fun DIY projects, great gift ideas from handmade shops on Etsy and stories to share about my holiday traditions. I'd love to hear yours. If you want to be a guest blogger shoot me an email at justj.create@gmail.com

My first Gift Guide can be a 12 days of Christmas countdown, an advent calendar, Hanukkah coutdown or whatever you chose to turn it into!!

I got the idea from when I did the pre-made date night/days for Matt and I for Valentines day. It has the same type of concept/idea. 

• For an advent calendar you can have envelopes made with the days. Each day/night you and your kids and open them up and do whats inside. This will be pre-made and take some time to do but it can be done in the summertime or done together as a family and then packed away. You can stuff and assemble the envelopes and assign the days which will be a surprise for the kiddos who won't know what's coming! Some suggestions could be doing small family Christmas craft projects, bake cookies one night, family night out for dessert (fro yo), chop down the christmas tree, decorate the tree, go choral-ing, open up a new christmas book and read it, write Santa a letters, make homemade holiday cards to send etc.

Here are some ways creative ways people have made homemade advent calendars:

this is a plastic closet shoe holder with brown bags. someone got fancy with numbers.

you could always have the kiddos as part of the Advent calendar help make/decorate it!

fancy schmancy!

brown bags numbered with ideas inside

• I've seen people do an Advent Christmas countdown with books but that can get expensive!!!!

• You could do craft projects, baked goodies, decorate, tell stories, or open up new books for a countdown to Hanukkah or Christmas. (the week before)

• One tradition I plan on trying with Matt and I for our first Christmas together as a married couple in our first home is a 12 days of Christmas. For example. Day 1: would one wrapped item, something small but unique. Day 2: A pair of something- gloves, socks, game tickets (Matt loves Sixer's and it's basketball season! woo!) Day 3, 4, 5: packs of something. And so on, I haven't thought of the other stuff but it could be little things. Movie night, dates, making Christmas ornaments, etc.