Adventures of Elfie: Day 2

Today, the kids found Elfie hanging from the dining room light! They were worried his arms would be sore tomorrow after hanging up there all day.

Jackson went downstairs first this morning and yelled, "Mom, you have to see this! Come down here right now!" When I asked him what was the matter, he said, "Elfie is hanging from the light!" I love the excitement Elfie brings out in our kids. 

At supper, we read Day 2 in our advent book. Since we didn't make the angel for the tree last night, Madelyn worked on that and Jackson made the sheep that went with today's reading. 

This is our Advent tree where we will hang the ornaments we make from the book. Not all the activities are crafts, however. The kids enjoyed hanging their ornament tonight. I hope it will be a special reminder of the stories we read this season.

Tomorrow, we will start our advent calendar. I got the idea from Pinterest last year. 

I used a 24-cup mini muffin pan and filled each cup with a treat for both kids. This year, I decided to add in a Christmas/family activity for each day. That brilliant idea (from pinterest, of course) came to me last night, so hopefully it will be worth all the planning! On the top of each cup is a magnet covered in paper with a number for each day. I'm excited for all the activities we have planned!

Come back tomorrow to see what Advent activities we are doing and what Elfie is up to!

Adventures of Elfie: Day 1

He's back!!

Elfie showed up this morning on the kitchen counter. He had a note for the kids and set out pancake mix, sprinkles, a mixing bowl and was holding a spatula. The note said we should celebrate his arrival with pancakes like they have in the North Pole...with sprinkles!

The kids were so excited to see him! Jackson was eager to try pancakes with sprinkles and ate every bite.

They both wanted to touch him, but refrained when I reminded them that he would lose his magic. They gave Elfie some ideas about where to hide and showed him new things they have learned since last Christmas. Madelyn used the potty all by herself a few times and Jackson cleaned up the living room in record time :) 

At supper tonight, we started our new advent devotional book. 

You can buy it at Christianbook.com here.

We had been reading a verse from the Bible every night, but I wanted to start the story of Christmas after Thanksgiving. 

This book begins with a scripture passage written in a language children can understand and follows with a prayer. There is also an activity that connects to the story at the end. Tonight, the activity was to make an angel and hang it on the tree. Because we had a late supper and I didn't plan ahead, we are going to do that after church tomorrow. 

We also started a bedtime Christmas book that has a scripture passage, story, prayer and poem. The kids loved it and begged to read two. Good thing there are so many stories... Who could say no to that? :)

The big question as they were getting ready for bed was: Where will Elfie be hiding in the morning?