{ Advent edition }
During these weeks between Thanksgiving and Christmas, our lives often feel very full. There are endless lists of things to do, the stores are busier than usual, and everyone is trying to make decisions about how they are going to prepare for and celebrate Christmas this year. On top of all of the "regular" stress, the holidays can be a difficult time as we grieve the loss of loved ones or adjust to different stages of life. Our hope with this Advent edition of the Mosaic is to provide some small invitations for you to embrace this season of waiting and experience peace in the midst of the craziness.
To EQUIP you as parents...
Some questions to ask: These could be for you to answer personally, to discuss with a close friend, or talk about as a family.
- How are you really doing?
- What is bringing you joy during this season?
- What are you hoping for right now?
- When you think about Jesus coming to earth as a baby, what do you imagine it might have been like if you were there?
- What about waiting do you find to be most challenging?
- Who around you do you see who could use your help?
- Where do you expect to experience God this month?
To ENRICH you in your walk with Christ...
Some words to ponder and pray: This prayer is taken from the book Every Moment Holy by Douglas McKelvey. It is a liturgy for the Christmas season that can be read as a group or on your own.
LEADER: As we prepare our house for the coming Christmas season, we would also prepare our hearts for the returning Christ.
PEOPLE: You came once for Your people, O Lord, and You will come for us again.
Though there was no room at the inn to receive You upon Your first arrival,
We would prepare You room here in our hearts and here in our home, Lord Christ.
As we decorate and celebrate, we do so to mark the memory of Your redemptive movement into our broken world, O God.
Our glittering ornaments and Christmas trees, our festive carols, our sumptuous feasts--
By these small tokens we affirm that something amazing has happened in time and space--
that God, on a particular night, in a particular place, so many years ago, was born to us, an infant King, our Prince of Peace.
Our wreaths and ribbons and colored lights, our giving of gifts, our parties with friends--these have never been ends in themselves.
They are but small ways in which we repeat that sounding joy first proclaimed by angels in the skies near Bethlehem.
In view of such great tidings of love announced to us, and to all people, how can we not be moved to praise and celebration this Christmas season?
As we decorate our tree, and as we feast and laugh and sing together, we are rehearsing our coming joy!
We are making ready to receive the One who has already, with open arms, received us!
We would prepare You room here in our hearts and here in our home, Lord Christ.
Now we celebrate Your first coming, Immanuel, even as we long for Your return.
O Prince of Peace, our elder brother, return soon. We miss You so!
Amen.
To help you ENGAGE with your kids...
Some ideas to consider: Back in 2021 we gathered an extensive list of favorite traditions and ways to enjoy the holiday season from the ACSD community. It's a wonderfully robust bunch of ideas that still feel very relevant so we're re-sharing them, with updated info as needed for this year. Check them out below, and then please let us know if you have something you would add to these lists!
PLACES TO GO
Koziar's Christmas Village (Christmas lights galore!)
Christmas on the Mountain - FREE large Christmas lights display with concessions. Open daily at 5pm, through December 23. 459 N 14th St. Reading
Ringing Dale Farm in Pottstown (cut your own tree)
Beck Tree Farms (another place to cut your own tree, along with farm animals to see, free hot cocoa and "the most picturesque location!")
Hay Creek Joanna Furnace - there is a Christmas themed weekend Dec. 1-3
Plow Farm in Mohnton - for photo taking and to purchase a real tree
Valley Forge National Park for the March In of the Continental Army - commemorating the 246th anniversary of the arrival of the Continental Army to Valley Forge. Activities include family-friendly programs, demonstrations, reenactors and more! Tuesday December 19
Longwood Gardens (one family made special note of the hot cider and treehouses)
Lehigh Valley Zoo (one family kicked off the Christmas season here this year!)
Wawa - a reasonably priced place to get hot chocolate, fill up with gas and then drive around looking at Christmas lights and decorations
Calvary Bible Fellowship (Sinking Spring) - free music light show you can watch from your car. Free hot chocolate on the weekends
Christmas in Birdsboro - at Main Bird Park, 4-8pm Dec. 9
Glick's Poinsettia Show - beautiful displays of poinsettias and other plants along with music and more, with the theme of "The Twelve Days of Christmas". Nov. 30-Dec. 2 and Dec. 4-6, 12-8pm.
Diggerland in NJ - a drive-through holiday light show, open most nights until Jan. 2
Fulton Opera House - currently running an incredible production of Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat as well as their Family Series show, Peter Pan
THINGS TO DO
Drive around to look at Christmas lights (for added fun, wear pajamas)
Take homemade baked goods to neighbors
Sing Christmas carols
Spend a full day doing Christmas decorations
Make Christmas cookies (while jamming to Christmas songs!)
Have a cookie decorating party
Read the Christmas story from the Bible Christmas morning
Watch Elf (one family admits to doing this a lot) and other Christmas movies (one family shared A Christmas Carol with Allister Sims as a favorite, and another family shared that they watch a Christmas movie while they decorate and put lights up)
Have a birthday cake for Jesus on Christmas Day (and sing "Happy Birthday, Jesus" as a reminder of why we're gathered and the real Gift we have the opportunity to celebrate)
Read "Twas the Night Before Christmas" to your children on Christmas Eve.
Start to listen to Christmas music in November! (or for some families, start this December 1)
Have a Christmas tree in every room of the house
Set up a Christmas village
Get together with family members
Take a winter walk in French Creek Park with hot chocolate and cookies
Make and decorate gingerbread houses (one family sometimes has a gingerbread house decorating competition with their extended family) *pro tip: Have younger children use a tissue box and decorate that as their house form so that it is less likely to collapse.
Make salt dough ornaments for gifts
Do the advent wreath, along with reading Bible verses, special stories and singing Christmas carols (one family shared that this tradition is one that the parents did growing up and have continued doing with their children)
Make homemade wassail and drink it (bonus: brewing it makes the house smell wonderful!)
Try to stop cats from drinking water from the tree for all of December
Leave a basket with drinks, snacks, and gift cards on the porch for delivery people
Read the book The Treasure of the Christmas stories (El Tesoro de Los Cuentos de Navidad) and The Tale of Three Trees
Invite friends to celebrate Christmas Eve dinner, share a devotional and play together
Make Christmas arrangements with kids - can hang them around schools, give vases to teachers, Swag for churches, local libraries, etc...
MORE BITS AND PIECES OF HOLIDAY FUN
Mr. Smither's nondisputable list (as of Christmas 2021) of Best Christmas Albums, in order:
1) Charlie Brown Christmas by Vince Guaraldi
2) Songs for Christmas by Sufjan Stevens
3) Advent EPs by Future of Forestry
4) Christmas with the Rat Pack by Frank, Dean, Sammy and co
5) Christmas Songs by Jars of Clay
6) Behold by Lauren Daigle
7) Let It Snow, Baby; Let It Reindeer by Relient K
8) Christmas Collection by Sleeping at Last
9) Evergreens by Jeremy Simon
10) Shatner Claus by William Shatner
At least one family has an elf named "Speedy" who causes a ton of mischief around the house during the entire season
One family has a magic pinecone. When they are ready to put up their Christmas tree, they set up the stand and skirt, put the magic pinecone in the stand, and water it. Then they run into another room and sing Christmas songs at the top of their lungs until they hear a loud "bang!" in the room where the magic pinecone was prepared. They run back to that room and, through a slight haze of smoke, they see their Christmas tree standing in its place. This is a tradition from the one side of the family in WV, and several other family members each have their own magic pinecone as well.
Another family does "The Polar Express"...
When the kids were littles we would make hot chocolate and pack cookies and we would never tell them what night it will be on… we just make up train tickets and hand them out and the excitement would ensue. At each stop they would hand us their ticket and we would put a punch in it. It was fun to get their jammies on and they thought they were going to bed!
For many years we couldn’t afford to go anywhere so we found some cool Christmas displays and one year a drive through live nativity. We would let them drink the hot chocolate and eat cookies while playing Christmas music and going somewhere to see lights. This turned into “Mom and Dad, why aren’t you wearing your jammies too?!” So… we wear our flannel jammie bottoms as well!”
As a few years went by, we added stopping for dinner somewhere simple. Add a few more years and we added giving each child $5.00, draw names and we would all go into the Five Below store (in said PJ’s) and buy the person whose name we picked something fun. We would exchange the gifts when we got back into the car.
We hope these bits and pieces are a blessing to you as you continue to follow Jesus in your everyday life. Thanks for allowing us to share!
For more encouragement and some suggested ways to pray with us, be sure to subscribe to our Prayer Matters blog, updated weekly throughout the school year.
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