Advent Activities 2012

Last year was the first year we did an Advent Activity Calendar.  I had so much fun creating the calendar, and the kids had a blast doing all of the activities!  I knew that we'd do it again this year.  There were some activities we wanted to repeat and some things I wanted to change up just so it wasn't exactly the same as last year.  

This year some of our activities will have a bible verse referencing that point we are driving home while doing the activity.  Others will reference the book The ADVENTure of Christmas by Lisa Whelchel.  (If you do not own this book, I highly recommend you click on the link and order it immediately!)  And lastly, some activities are simply just for plain ol' family fun!

I hope that you will enjoy our activity list.  Please feel free to use it and share it, and if you have questions about any of these activities or would like more details into what we are doing, just ask!  I hope that you will have as much fun celebrating Jesus this month as our family will!

Write a letter to Santa

Open your special ornament and hang it on the tree

("The ADVENTure of Christmas" pg. 12)

Make Paper Snowflakes

(Isaiah 1:18)

Snow Man Sundaes

Reindeer Evangelists for 5 Friends

("The ADVENTure of Christmas" pg. 14)

Neighborhood Prayer Walk

Grinch Movie Night

Attend Christmas Parade

Secret Santa

(Acts 20:35)

Visit Santa

Christmas Pizza

Santa Hat Photo Shoot

Dollar Tree Shopping

("The ADVENTure of Christmas" pg. 44)

North Pole Breakfast

Look at Christmas Lights in our pajamas

("The ADVENTure of Christmas" pg. 24)

Dress fancy for dinner

Christmas Carols

S'Mores in the fire place

Picnic in front of the Christmas Tree

Hot Chocolate by the fire

Decorate Gingerbread Houses

Christmas Music Dance Party

Make and decorate cookies for Santa

("The ADVENTure of Christmas" pg. 36)

Unwrap your Christmas pajamas and listen to Popo read "Twas the Night Before Christmas"

("The ADVENTure of Christmas" pg. 60)

Read the story about the Birth of Jesus

The Wedding

Pictures have been in for awhile now, and I have totally slacked on sharing them on here!  I wanted to post enough of them to sum up the day, so here goes!  

Photography:
Crystal DeAnda Photography
http://crystaldeanda.com/
Crystal is fabulously sweet and wonderful in every way!  She made us feel so beautiful, and we are thrilled with how well the pictures turned out!  I hope you enjoy them!

My wedding band.  Passed down to be from my Granddaddy.  It was his mother's wedding band.

Leaving the reception!

Special moments before the ceremony!

Praying with our sweet children and pastor.

So glad to be spending the rest of my life walking hand in hand with this amazing man of God.

Venue:
MD Resort
www.mdresort.com
MD Resort is the sweetest coziest little bed and breakfast.  We used them for the venue and catering.  They were so helpful and kind.  They were willing to go out of their way to make sure everything I wanted happened.  We enjoyed our stay there, and we look forward to going back on our first anniversary!  It was definitely the perfect venue for our rustic chic wedding!

Ceremony site - Pecan Orchard.
The reception was held in the Party Barn.

Decorations:
DIY
We did all of our decorating on our own!  Most of the crafty fabulous things that you see were done by my super talented Aunt Lisa.  A huge thanks to my mom, sister, and dad who also helped make everything we needed!  It was a little stressful going the DIY route, but it was oh so fun!

These are quilts that my Nanny has made for all of us.

Ceremony Music:

Jack Baldwin
Jack is a member of our church.  My desire was to have Canon in D played with only an acoustic guitar with the Bridal Chorus and Wedding March also with only the guitar.  He did a fantastic job making this dream come true!














Reception Music:
Melodies & Memories
http://melmemdj.com
Melody is super talented and is using her God given talents being a DJ!  She was the perfect fit for our crowd, as I imagine that she is for any group.  We loved every moment of having her with us.  I would recommend her for any wedding or event because she was just that fun and that great at what she does!  She truly completed the night!

Party Favors:
DIY
My Aunt Lisa & Nanny were oh so sweet to make little jars of jelly for all of my guests!  It was the perfect touch!




 
















Flowers:
Celebrations by Judy
www.celebrationsbyjudy.com
Us finding Judy was truly God's work.  She was so helpful and kind.  She was more than willing to work within our budget, never trying to sell us more than we needed.  She saw my vision and helped make it a reality.  

Cake:
Too Sweeties Bake Shoppe
www.toosweeties.com
My dear friend, Jennifer, runs Too Sweeties Bake Shoppe!  She makes the yummiest cakes and cupcakes.  She made me a beautiful lace wedding cake that tasted amazing!  Her cakes never disappoint!

Pies:
The Flour Shop Bakery
www.ilovetheflourshopbakery.com
This great little bakery is not far from us in Highland Village, TX.  This was our first time to get pies from there, and they were fantastic.  The price was great and the pies were even better!  

 

 And now we are living our happily ever after!