Elena 
Thanksgiving is center stage this week, but just a few days after that is the first Sunday of Advent! Are you ready? And I don’t mean for Chrismas – I mean for Advent! The halls don’t have to be decked the day after Halloween! In fact, I think it’s better if they aren’t. How can we truly immerse ourselves into the beautiful season of watchful waiting that is Advent if we’re caught up in the hustle and bustle of getting ready for Christmas?
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Here are my 5 quick and easy tips for making Advent easy, fun, and memorable while getting ready for Christmas.
1. Put up your nativity scene before you put up your Christmas tree. All you really need is a little statue of Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus. Make sure it is in a prominent place where the children and you can look at it throughout the day. But don’t put Baby Jesus in the manger just yet! The empty place for Baby Jesus reminds us that we too are waiting for his birth on Christmas Day!
I read in a forum this year that instead of doing Elf on the Shelf, some folks are moving Mary and Joseph around the house until Christmas Eve when they finally arrive at the manger. I like that idea.
Also, if you do buy or make a set of wise men figurines, don’t put them immediately up in the stable with Mary and Joseph. Put them at the far end of the house so that they can truly journey to Bethlehem! They arrive on Epiphany Day, January 6
2. Put a purple tablecloth on the table. The colors of Christmas are red and green, but the color for Advent is purple. Let that little bit of color remind you that we are still preparing our hearts and minds for the arrival of Jesus on Christmas morning. Put an Advent Wreath in the center for a beautiful way to count down the weeks to Christmas
3. Celebrate the saints of the season! Saint Nicholas Day is December 6! Fill the shoes of your children with candy and pennies! But don’t do anything too elaborate. St. Nick was a servant to the poor. Let your children experience these simple pleasures. St. Lucy’s feast day is December 13. Candles and tasty breakfast buns could be the treat for the day, to be enjoyed while discussing St. Lucy’s life and Christian witness.
4. Mary has two big feast days before Christmas too. The Feast of the Immaculate Conception is December 8. On that day, fix a white dinner of some sort (chicken, noodles, or potatoes) and maybe a white cake or cupcakes to remember Mary’s pure and stainless soul. The Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe is December 12; that’s always a good day for Mexican food and to remember the story of St. Juan Diego and the miracle he experienced.
5. Most importantly, make quiet time for contemplation and prayer. Say the Christmas novena starting on the feast of St. Andrew – that’s supposed to be said 15 times a day so just keeping up with that changes the entire focus of Advent. As a family, we read the scripture readings for the Jesse Tree and light the Advent wreath before dinner. Those are all meaningful ways to get the most out of the Advent season in anticipation of Christmas!