Monday, November 14, 2016

Names of Christ Advent Giveaway (Ends 11/25/16)

If you're anything like me, you're still congratulating yourself for successfully getting everyone into a Halloween costume on time and then all of a sudden realize that sweet son of a nutcracker it's already mid-November and I think I need to go breathe into a paper bag!

Obviously we buy a lot of paper bags around here. But I can help.

In the next few weeks I'll be posting some of my favorite things and my kids' favorite Christmas gifts and toys from over the years, but today I'm helping you out with Advent. I know, I'm such a lifesaver.

Last year, Heidi at A Lively Hope gave me a free digital copy of this beautiful Names of Christ Advent Devotional for families to review and two to give away, and we're doing it again!

Last-minute style, because that's the only way I roll.

Win one of two digital copies in this Names of Christ Advent Giveaway! Keep Christ in Christmas, keep your kids entertained. Several ways to enter, some you can do every day! {posted @ Unremarkable Files}

Win one of two digital copies in this Names of Christ Advent Giveaway! Keep Christ in Christmas, keep your kids entertained. Several ways to enter, some you can do every day! {posted @ Unremarkable Files}

My kids loved doing Names of Christ last year, and we're looking forward to doing it again this year. Here's how it works:

From every day from December 1st until Christmas, your family learns about a different title for Jesus Christ and colors a pretty ornament.

Win one of two digital copies in this Names of Christ Advent Giveaway! Keep Christ in Christmas, keep your kids entertained. Several ways to enter, some you can do every day! {posted @ Unremarkable Files}
Cut out the circles, glue together with a loop of ribbon in the middle, and bam. You've got an ornament.
Each day has a page with that day's name, a few Bible verses where it's found, and some discussion questions that make your family think about just why Jesus is called "Prince of Peace," anyway.

The discussions were a little too basic for our older kids, so we beefed them up a bit by adding our own insights and thoughts.

Because of Heidi's signature Zentangle/adult coloring book style, even the older kids who outgrew coloring years ago were excited about doing these intricate ornaments.

Win one of two digital copies in this Names of Christ Advent Giveaway! Keep Christ in Christmas, keep your kids entertained. Several ways to enter, some you can do every day! {posted @ Unremarkable Files}
Fact: kids listen better while their hands are busy. Especially our 4-year-old.

Because it's digital, I can use Names of Christ year after year and print off as many copies as I want.

You're even allowed to share printed copies (not the digital version) for personal or classroom use, so I printed off some more of these and brought them to my Sunday School class last year for my 9- and 10-year-olds to make the Sunday before Christmas.

Win one of two digital copies in this Names of Christ Advent Giveaway! Keep Christ in Christmas, keep your kids entertained. Several ways to enter, some you can do every day! {posted @ Unremarkable Files}

Our four oldest kids times 24 ornaments equals a lot of ornaments (plus I'm a perfectionist who had to stuff a rag in my mouth to keep from screaming when my kids put the stamps on our Christmas cards crooked,) so we gave the kids their own special tree for the ornaments they made.

Ours curled a little after the glue dried because we printed them out on regular typing paper. If that would drive you crazy (again, perfectionist, I totally get it) you could use nicer cardstock.

Win one of two digital copies in this Names of Christ Advent Giveaway! Keep Christ in Christmas, keep your kids entertained. Several ways to enter, some you can do every day! {posted @ Unremarkable Files}

Heidi is giving away two digital copies, so enter below to win one! The giveaway runs from today through November 25.

The widget below tells you all the ways to enter; they're all optional and you can even do some of them every day. We'll randomly choose winners and Heidi will email the digital copy to you just in time to make it look like you had this Advent thing planned all along.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

If you missed or didn't win the giveaway, you can also buy the Names of Christ Advent Devotional through my affiliate link by clicking here: Buy Now


Disclaimer: I'll be the first to admit that last year, we didn't make our goal of doing an ornament every single day, and if I'm completely honest we probably won't this year.

But it helped us keep Christ in Christmas which is really what it's all about.

Win one of two digital copies in this Names of Christ Advent Giveaway! Keep Christ in Christmas, keep your kids entertained. Several ways to enter, some you can do every day!  {posted  @ Unremarkable Files}

For those of you who are panicking because the holidays are sneaking up on you again, I hope you win!

And for those of you who've had your entire Christmas planned out since August, my hat is off to you. Feel free to come mow my lawn and remove the Easter egg wreath from my front door anytime you like.

Win one of two digital copies in this Names of Christ Advent Giveaway! Keep Christ in Christmas, keep your kids entertained. Several ways to enter, some you can do every day! {posted @ Unremarkable Files}

giveaway sponsored by A Lively Hope

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31 comments:

Kali said...

Thanks for the giveaway!!!

Susan said...

This would be a great tradition to start with our family. Our favorite Christmas tradition is to put all the Christmas Legos together as a family.

Willefam said...

My favorite tradition is watching a Muppet Christmas Carol while drinking lots of Hot Chocolate! I also love the family nativity 'program' we do on Christmas Eve!

PurpleSlob said...

My fave is reading the Christmas story in Luke 2,
I love that names of Christ pic over your mantel!! I should do that!
Thanks so much for hosting the giveaway!!

Willefam said...

Did you make the scripture tree print on your mantel? I LOVE it!!

Alicia @ Sweeping Up Joy said...

We love using our Christmas picture books as a guide for our time leading up to Christmas. I just posted about it here: http://www.sweepingupjoy.com/pre-advent-prep-the-list/

Anonymous said...

Watching Christmas movies, baking & of course, Christmas mass.

Melinda said...

Love Heidi, and her amazing talent! This post was hilarious! (Perfectionists and paper bags- oh yeah!) we love to have advents in our home, 1 per the amount of children I have. Then each day we do our advents, and everyone rotates which one they get to do each day. It's been a tradition for awhile now, and so fun! I'll definitely be looking into these if I don't win.

Jenny Evans said...

We just watched the Muppet version for the first time last year and my kids loved it.

We also put on a nativity play with some friends on Christmas Eve and it produces some very memorable moments. Like the time we didn't have enough boys so my daughter was a wise man and used her very long hair and a ponytail to make a beard, or the time my toddler refused the frankincense and presented baby Jesus with a Hot Wheels car instead. Good times.

Jenny Evans said...

We love reading Luke 2 before diving into the stockings and presents Christmas morning. At least I love it, and the kids humor me.

Jenny Evans said...

I did! I've seen similar things on Etsy that I *may* have been inspired by...

Jenny Evans said...

That's such a fun idea! My kids would be all over that.

carrielyshous said...

This sounds great! I love the idea of them coloring an ornament while we talk about the name for the day.

J, K, L, and D said...

We have two favorite traditions - 1, a treasure hunt (it can be any present, but it's the last one. And the kids adore searching all over the house for clues), & 2- drop and runs (where we fix up a box of food or presents or goodies and deliver them anonymously to those we know who may be struggling or need a pick me up). We used to do the secret drop and runs for Thanksgiving, and they spilled over into Christmastime. Love doing it. I'm usually the get away driver because I'm a slower runner than everyone else! :) Thanks for hosting this giveaway. I'd be so excited to do this with my almost 6 & almost 4 year olds (& welcoming a baby soon - mere weeks now - so I'm getting Christmas stuff ready EARLY this year!).

Jenny Evans said...

Good luck and I hope everything goes smoothly getting baby here!

I love the idea of drop and runs. Another one I heard that I'd like to try out is when you drive around to look at Christmas lights, you leave a plate of cookies and a thank-you note at the doorstep of the best one.

CJ said...

These are great. We have a new family tradition that we love. Chinese Food on Christmas Eve. We used to do a big meal but my mom decided it would be easier just to go out for dinner now that there are so many of us. My entire family gets together so there are any where between 15-30 people depending on the year.

Audrey Louise said...

This is such a great idea! And I love coloring- I feel like I'd enjoy these little daily reminders to A) think of God and B) celebrate Advent!
My favorite Christmas tradition is putting up the tree at my parents' house. I also LOVE the Christmas Eve service!

Jenny Evans said...

Exactly, it's not just for kids - they don't call it ADULT coloring for nothing!

PurpleSlob said...

Jenny, here's your post.
https://purpleslobinrecovery.wordpress.com/2016/11/16/giving-girl/

Laura said...

I'm a sucker for a Christ centered advent.

Stacy said...

Perhaps our favorite, and most unusual, Christmas tradition is the tree lighting. We invite all the neighbors over for hot chocolate and donuts and then light a tree...on fire...in the front yard. My husband grew up doing this at a neighbor's house every year and he insisted we had to do it. This will be our third year. It's really fun, especially when you tell people it's a tree lighting and don't explain it. But we've already got people asking if we are doing it this year. It's really weird, but even I have come to truly love this crazy tradition!

me said...

Favorite tradition : baking cheese braids to share with friends and neighbors, making fun, cinnamon rolls or donuts on Christmas morning... Can you tell we like to eat sweets?

Jenny Evans said...

Thank you, Melinda! I feel really grateful to have a blogging friend like you! Good luck to you and your readers.

Jenny Evans said...

Why can't you be OUR neighbor??

Unknown said...

What a fun idea! My girls still both love to color, so they would really get into this. Thanks for sharing!

Unknown said...

My favorite tradition is building a gingerbread nativity scene.

The Minister's Wife said...

Our families favorite Christmas tradition is reading the Christmas story from Luke 2 each year. We won't open presents until we do, so we can focus on what Christmas really is about.

Jenny Evans said...

We do that, too!

Jenny Evans said...

Do you make your own pieces or find a kit? I've never seen those, only houses and trains.

PurpleSlob said...

Oh Jenny! I can't believe I won!! thanks so much!!

Jenny Evans said...

Congratulations to you! I promise you were randomly selected and this wasn't some sort of favoritism - I have a third-party program choose the winners for me automatically. Sort of the digital version of drawing names out of a hat.