Advent Calendar: Week 1

One of my favorite things we do, but it also makes it a little busier.  I guess sometimes busy is worth it.  So, here’s what we’ve been up to:
Day 1: Unwrap an Ornament.  This is a new activity this year.  I think it would be fun to make this a tradition, so they leave with some nice ornaments.  (Not that all those homemade ones are nice, but you know…)  This year, Ellie unwrapped a tiny penguin, and Madison received a tiny angel.

… and decorate the tree

   

… and go to the Dalton Holiday Festival to see their coloring pictures

    

and Santa.  Ellie had quite the list to tell him, while Madison had only one specific thing.

         

Day 2: Oak Grove Mennonite Live Nativity.   This is a favorite every year, and it somehow never really gets old.  I think the fact that they always have a real baby to be the part of Jesus helps.  This years baby Jesus was actually someone we knew – the mother was who I took a long term maternity sub position for back when Ellie was a baby!

Day 3: Shop and Donate food for a food drive.  The girls each had $20.  This one was not a easy as I had planned.  Lest you think these are always magical experiences, let me be real.  They were hungry because we went right after school.  They asked to stop at the pet store first to look at hamsters and guinea pigs.  Being in the “let’s have fun” spirit, I said yes.  They actually held both animals, which surprised me.  The downside came when they decided to fixate on those and whine about why they couldn’t have them today for most of the time we shopped.  Also, there were not tiny carts at Wal-mart so they couldn’t have their own, which meant we had to studiously watch where we placed each person’s food.  Then, at checkout, we went through the self-scan and bag lane because, again, I thought it would be fun.  It was fun, until… Ellie spent $2.22 over her $20 and Madison came out $0.03 under budget.  Ellie broke down because she thought Madison would get to keep her extra money – 3 CENTS worth!!  Then, they were mad they didn’t get an Auntie Anne’s pretzel.  By the time I got into the van, I thought, “Well, Merry Christmas to you, too. Blah.”  Hopefully, the putting it under the tree at church will be a more festive experience.  Side note: We did that tonight.  Added our food to the tree at church.  It was more festive.

Day 4: Go to a choir concert.  I am not sure if this is a cop out or not, but we enjoy it anyways.  Madison was in her 3rd/4th grade choir performance tonight.  The musical was Paint the Town December.  It was really cute, and the kids did a great job.  Madison looked like she had a lot of fun up there on stage, too.

Day 5: Dance to Christmas Songs.  Always a fun one.  Fairly short experience since we had a lot of homework and choir tonight.  It was enough.

Day 6: Interview Family Members.  This is a new one.  I thought it could be fun to ask the same questions each year and watch how we, and our answers, change.  The girls had fun with this.  (Mostly, Madison cried because she ONLY wanted to write down people’s answers, not record the interview.  Ellie wanted to record. Then, when Madison wrote the questions out, it didn’t precisely match up to her lines she counted out for each person.  You know when you see all your worst traits in your children; yeah, not pretty.)  The end result was fun.

Day 7: Go Christmas Shopping.  We started out by buying treats at the gas station for our snacks on the the way to Canton; I learned from Day 3 hungry kids are not good kids.  Then, we went to Target then Kohl’s; these were their choices.  Target involved a lot of looking at toy aisles.  They had fun.  They are the kids that get to see the toy section of a store like twice a year, so they talk like they are from another planet about how amazing it is.  Kohls involved more jewelry and clothes with a little toys thrown in.  (Also, I learned a bit more how to play the Kohl’s game of discounts and Kohl’s cash.  I failed at it today, but I learned for the future.  They first use your Kohl’s cash, then apply a discount.  This means I used my cash for what I would have already saved with the discount.  Ugh.)  We met Jeremy, who had been out of state for work, at Red Robin for supper.  Always a fun place for kids.

Day 8: Stuff and Stamp Christmas cards.  I am sure if you are reading this, you will benefit from this activity.  I got our photos just in time for this.  I will be printing the labels shortly.  This is a quick, but necessary activity, that the girls usually enjoy.  We did have fun with this as well.