A favourite Christmas tradition in our family is our Advent Calendar. I bought it on a whim years ago at the grocery store of all places, and it is our most beloved Christmas decoration! Its just a simple wooden tree made of 24 little doored boxes, but for our family it is so much more. I like it because it’s a beautiful decoration, and its NOT filled with chocolate — my kids like it because there is a new surprise to discover each morning!

Instead of filling each box with a sweet treat, I fill them with a variety of Christmas themed activities cards. Over the years, I lost a good number of the original cards I had made. Last year I resorted to scratching out activities on  pieces of scrap paper the night before — but this year I’ve got a whole new set of cards, ready to go!

FREE printable Advent Activity Cards - Chocolate-free Advent Calendar idea

If you’re looking for Advent activity ideas, here’s what I included on our cards:

  1. Watch a Christmas movie
  2. Decorate tree
  3. Make Christmas craft
  4. Family games night
  5. Wrap Christmas gifts
  6. Bake cookies
  7. Make snow angels
  8. Make Christmas cards
  9. Go tobogganing
  10. Go skating
  11. Carol sing
  12. Make a snowman
  13. Make pomander balls
  14. Bring cookies to a neighbour
  15. Donate to a local food bank
  16. Create nativity story play
  17. Bring socks & mittens to homeless shelter
  18. Make paper snowflakes
  19. Dress in red & green
  20. Go on a Christmas lights drive
  21. Watch The Nutcracker Ballet
  22. Snuggle up with a stack of Christmas books
  23. Make Christmas ornaments
  24. Make pinecone bird feeders
  25. Make a Christmas carol recording and post/share by email

I also made a few blank cards, in case I come up with any additional ideas 🙂

Does this sound like something your family would enjoy? If so, then download your own set of 24+ Advent Activity Cards. I hope you have fun using them, and they become a treasured family tradition for your family too — its so important to build your family culture!

Don’t have a advent calendar? Not a problem! You can use your cards to make a paper chain, or check Pinterest for a plethora of homemade Advent calendar ideas!

Do you have any advent activity ideas that I missed? Share them in the comments below!


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