Yule Advent Calendar

When I was a kid I loved opening the little windows on the advent calendar my mom bought for us.  I loved reading the story in side each little window, and knowing how many days were left until the big day!  This is something I've always wanted to share with my own children, but I can never find Yule themed advent calendar.  I've also thought about making my own.  I wanted it to be something I could reuse every year and fun.  Thank you Pinterest, for helping me find exactly what I was looking for.
I spent my Thanksgiving week/weekend making a Yule advent calendar for my family.  I doesn't have cute little windows to open, but I'm hoping it will still be lots of fun for the kids.

I started by picking my dad's brain to find out what I could put 21 clothes pins, with business cards in them, on.  He suggested an old ceiling tile.  Since we recently had to replace some of our ceiling tiles, because they got yucky, and we never seem to throw anything away I happened to have one.  I went out the the store the next day and picked up small cans of white and silver spray paint.  Spray painting at the end of November outside is no fun at all.  I was cold and I now have silver/white finger tips on my gloves.  And I was worried my husband might step on my project when he came home from work, since I left it on the walkway outside to dry.  Thankfully I remembered to tell him to watch his step in the dark.
When everything was mostly dry, I started work on painting the clothes pins with some pretty designs.  Mostly dry only because it seems that ceiling tiles don't hold paint well.  Every time we touch it a little bit of silver comes off on our fingers.  Hopefully this will stop soon.

Painted and ready to glue on

On the twenty-one cards I put fun activities for us to do each day.  I also wrote on the front of each card a little something about why we celebrate Yule.  I printed the cards and the little number circles from Avery.com on white card stock.  Then I just cut them all out.

Everything all glued on and
ready to go

Close up view

I used google and pinterest to come up with ideas to add to the ones we already do during the month of December.

• Read a holiday story
• Write down what you adore most about each member of the family
• Have breakfast for dinner
• Donate gifts to a child in need
• Have a cup of hot cocoa
• Make Yule suns
• Make gingerbread houses
• Go to a holiday show
• Watch a holiday movie
• Go see the lights
• Decorate the tree
• Make an ornament
• Bake cookies
• Go see Santa
• Play a game together
• Write a letter to Santa
• Play holiday music and sing-along
• Go sledding
• Play a family game
• Unwrap new PJs
• Go see the sunrise
• Write down your ten favorite memories from the last year

 My husband put picture hanging wire on the back and now our Yule Advent Calendar is hanging in the kitchen ready for December first.  My youngest so is very excited he keeps telling me "I can't wait till December, Mommy."

 

~Earthy Mom