Rest! Jesus, Our Savior, Was Born!

Today was definitely a Sabbath day for my family, a habit we are trying to cultivate. We certainly enjoyed resting together! Our homeschool Advent activity was singing Christmas carols, and the one that talks about rest is “God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen”. This is the video that we watched while we sang the song.

Enjoy resting in the Lord!

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“Deck the Tree” with Applesauce Ornaments This Advent

We had some homeschool friends over to do our Advent activity today, making cinnamon applesauce ornaments. They smell so good! The best part of this project is that all of the ingredients are non-toxic, so this is perfect for young children. However, if your children are very young, I recommend having another adult with you to supervise since my friend and I found this activity difficult to do alone. I also advise you to let the children play with the dough before you cut out the ornaments. I set up all of my supplies ahead of time, too. This project is well worth the planning and time that it takes to do, though.

Supplies

Lyrics to “Deck the Halls”
“Tree Ornament – Spicy Apple Sauce” recipe from Craft Bits (Note: I added 1/4 cup more applesauce than this recipe calls for. The dough was too dry otherwise.)
Bible
Your Favorite Christmas Storybook (I used The Story of Christmas by Patricia A. Pingry.)

Objectives

~To understand that our Lord is beautiful.
~To make the connection that since God is creative and beautiful, we are and people enjoy being surrounded by beauty.

I wrote the following on the index card inside the Advent calendar.

Bible Verse

One thing I ask of the LORD, this is what I seek: that I may dwell in the house of the LORD all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the LORD and to seek him in his temple. Psalm 27:4Psalm 27:4
English: World English Bible - WEB
4 One thing I have asked of Yahweh, that I will seek after, That I may dwell in the house of Yahweh all the days of my life, To see Yahweh’s beauty, And to inquire in his temple.

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Kids’ Activity

~Sing “Deck the Halls”
~Read your Christmas storybook.
~Read the Bible verse. Explain that this verse tells us that the Lord is beautiful. Since He is beautiful and Christmas is all about Jesus’ birth, we are making our Christmas tree beautiful.
~Make the cinnamon ornaments.

Family Activity

~Decorate your Christmas tree.

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“Follow that Star” Advent Activity

We completed another successful homeschool Advent activity today. I think that you and your preschool age children will enjoy this one. Please post a comment if you have ideas for older children.

Supplies

Lyrics to “We Three Kings of Orient Are” (We only sang the first verse and the chorus.)
Star craft printable
Black construction paper
Glue sticks
Scissors
Bible

Objectives

~To understand who the Magi were.
~To understand that the Magi followed a star to find baby Jesus.

The following was written on the index card in our Advent calendar.

Bible Verses

After Jesus was born in Bethlehem in Judea, during the time of King Herod, Magi from the east came to Jerusalem and asked, “Where is the one who has been born king of the Jews? We saw his star in the east and have come to worship him.” Matthew 2:1-2Matthew 2:1-2
English: World English Bible - WEB
2 ¹ Now when Jesus was born in Bethlehem of Judea in the days of Herod the king, behold, wise men The word for “wise men” can also mean teachers, priests, physicians, astrologers, seers, interpreters of dreams, or sorcerers. from the east came to Jerusalem, saying, ² “Where is he who is born King of the Jews? For we saw his star in the east, and have come to worship him.”

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Kids’ Activity

~Sing “We Three Kings of Orient Are”.
~Read the Bible verses. Talk about how the magi were wise men who studied the stars, and they noticed a special star in the sky when Jesus was born. They followed that star to find baby Jesus.
~Make the star craft. Glue the star onto the black construction paper.

Family Activity

~Do some star gazing. If you have one, use a telescope. Talk about constellations.

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“Jesus is the Light” Homeschool Advent Activity

In our homeschool we had another successful Advent calendar activity today, and I just have to share it with you. I think that your children will enjoy this one just as much as mine did!

Supplies

Bible
Flashlights (one for each child)
Dark room
Lyrics to “Silent Night”

Bible Verse

“I have come into the world as a light so that no one who believes in me should stay in darkness.” John 12:46John 12:46
English: World English Bible - WEB
46 I have come as a light into the world, that whoever believes in me may not remain in the darkness.

Kids’ Activity

~Sing Silent Night.
~Talk about how you cannot see anything in the dark and that you can use a flashlight, nightlight, lamp, or a candle to see in the dark. Discuss how Jesus tells us that He is the light of the world. If we need help, He can light the way. He is just like the other things we use to light up the darkness. Jesus can show you what you what to do if you ask Him for help.
~In a dark room give each child a flashlight. Play flashlight tag. Walk around with the flashlights reciting the verse as you go. Have one child light a path for everyone else to walk. (The kids love doing this. Enjoy their laughter!)

Family Activity

~Put lights on the Christmas tree. Discuss how the lights represent Jesus. He is our light in the dark.

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A Few of My Favorite Christmas Titles

During Advent, my family reads lots of books about the true meaning of Christmas. I think that reading these books helps the kids internalize the”Good News”. Each book also acts as a springboard for discussions about Jesus and the story of His birth. Here are a few of my favorite titles that help establish the foundation of the true meaning of Christmas:

• God Gave Us Christmas by Lisa Tawn Bergren is one of my favorite books because it explains that Christmas is a gift from God. The book does not ignore the fact that many families keep Santa as part of their Christmas tradition, though. It stays true to the greatness of God and the miracle of Jesus.

• I love the simplicity and the authenticity of The Story of Christmas by Patricia A. Pingry. This book is bilingual, English and Spanish. It is easy enough for the youngest of readers to understand.
• The Christmas Story by Patricia A. Pingry is another book that tells about Jesus’ birth in an easy to understand format. The story is accurate as well.
• Another favorite Christmas tale is How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr. Seuss. I love how the Grinch learns that Christmas is not about the gifts. Instead, he finds that Christmas is about family and love.

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Fun Thanksgiving Day Activities

I know that Thanksgiving day can pose a few challenges for my family. We have two very active young children, and we also have a nephew who will join us. I have been thinking carefully about how to structure the day so that every family member, including each child, is happy and entertained. It is difficult to strike a balance, but I think I have a few solutions.

• My nephew loves to throw balls and just about anything that looks like a ball. I am going to use that to my advantage and create a bean bag toss game. We already have bean bags that we made for A2’s birthday party. (We used mismatched socks that don’t fit the kids anymore and filled them with dried beans.) We’ll make a flat board with pictures of the foods included in a Thanksgiving meal. The kids will toss bean bags on the board. Each time the bag lands on a picture the child will collect a card with a picture of that food on it. The child will place that food card on the corresponding picture on a place mat to complete the meal. If a child has already added a particular food, s/he can give that food to another player.
• There are great Bible verse coloring pages at A Kid’s Heart that we can color together. We can also memorize a verse!
• Kaboose has Thanksgiving Day pictures to color. We’ll turn them into coloring books for each of the kids.
• All of the adults want to watch the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade. We’ll play Thanksgiving Day parade BINGO while we watch it.
• We’ll play a Thanksgiving Concentration with these cards from ABC Teach.

I hope that these ideas help you to make this Thanksgiving enjoyable for everyone!

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