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I’m always thinking about the important stuff, hidden inside our little everyday life, and family traditions are such a big part of all of this. As soon as December is approaching, we can look forward to so many festivities, like my daughters birthday, “Sinterklaas” and all the preparations for Christmas. I always want to immerse myself and remember it all, which is why I document so much in my Project Life and December Daily albums.

One of my most favorite new family traditions is creating our own advent calendar. Every year, for the last 4 years, I make an advent calendar for my family. It doesn’t take much to make something that is special for your family and create a new Christmas tradition.

This year I decided to go for the quick and easy approach. We don’t need another massive project, that just adds more stress to the holiday season. Last month I purchased little kraft bags at the Kreadoe (a fair in Utrecht), but you can also find them online. Being a fan of December Daily means I have December related embellishments and Project Life Cards at hand. The ones that I used most were from Snap Stories. The numbers I got at an online store last year. And that’s really it. I sat down, put some music on, and within an hour, the calendar was done!

How I got my advent calendar ready in one evening

I just added a number to each one of the bags, all at the same place, so it would be easier to hang them properly.

After that, I got crazy with the embellishments.

I selected the bags with an important date, like the birthday of my daughter and Christmas Eve and made them extra special, with an extra beautiful card.

Every bag contains a Project Life card, with a little message. It’s a little note, for example, Tonight we will decorate our Christmas tree” or “Tonight you can decide what we are having for dinner”.

I don’t add all the cards at once. Flexibility is key, so I will write something the evening before. And each morning my daughter will hurry downstairs and grab a card. I’m totally loving this simple way of celebrating December!

The kids get enough presents during this month. Just having little notes tucked inside, and seeing the anticipation on their faces, makes it so worth doing this.

Do you have an advent calendar? 

Have an amazing day,

Jessica