5 Days of Easy DIY Advent Calendars

Jesse Tree

Oh, boy! Where has the year gone. The Fall comes rolling in and is quickly replaced with the hustle and bustle of the holidays. Thanksgiving is right here and then all the shopping for Christmas really begins. What about Advent? How do you celebrate? Do you need an Easy DIY Advent Calendar? I think about Advent and countdown to Christmas months ahead but do not want to RUSH the season. Then BAM I have to rush to put together something for Advent whether its a Jesse Tree, Advent packages, Nativity scene, special ornaments or little tags.

 

 Jesse Tree Celebration ideas:

Have you ever heard about the Jesse Tree? Here’s what About.com has to say:

“The Jesse Tree represents the family tree, or genealogy of Jesus Christ. It tells the story of God’s salvation plan, beginning with creation and continuing through the Old Testament, to the coming of the Messiah. The name comes from Isaiah 11:1, “Then a shoot will spring from the stem of Jesse, and a branch from his roots will bear fruit.” (NASB)

Each day of Advent a homemade ornament is added to the Jesse Tree, a small tree made of evergreen branches. These symbolic ornaments can each represent a prophecy foretelling of Christ. Other variations include creating ornaments that represent the ancestors in the lineage of Christ, or using the various monogram symbols of Christianity as handmade ornaments.”

I heard about Jesse Tree a couple of years ago. We even tried to give it a try, but got busy with holiday stuff and hubby working past bedtime when in retail. This made it very hard to start a new tradition when I had to try and put three kids to bed AND remember the daily devotion. This year I wanna try something along the lines of an Truth in the Tinsel, Advent or Jesse Tree tradition. Just not sure which, yet! I will definitely post what we do or what we discover.

Here are my 5 favorite Jesse Tree examples:

This is a great idea for any family wanting to create ornaments from clay. They might take a little extra work but would be worth it in the long run.

 Traditions: Jesse Tree Advent Ornaments from Half-a-Hundred Acre Wood

 

These ornaments are a variety of cloth, yarn, and other 3D items. So cool and creative to find resources around the house to create these precious ornaments.

 Jesse Tree Ornaments and Activities from Harrington Harmonies

 

Wanna delve a little more into Jess Tree and what it all means? Check this Jesse Tree Unit Study out for all sorts of free printables.

Jesse Tree Advent Unit from Confessions of a Homeschooler

 

Got a few friends wanting to start a new tradition with you? How about having an ornament swap? Lots of fun with less work!

Homemade Jesse Tree Ornament Exchange Ideas from Beauty and Bedlam

 

Here’s another ornament exchange with some more example of the Jesse Tree ornaments. I love all the variety and of course food and fellowship!

the jesse tree ornament exchange from lovingly thrown together

 

Spend the next five days checking out five different types of Advent calendars: Family Activities,Jesse Tree, Handmade, Vintage, Edible, and Devotional . I hope these ideas will help provide the inspiration that you need to decide how to celebrate with your family. I have invited a few friends to share along the way to make this super fun! If you just cannot wait until we all have shared what we’ve found you can pop on over to pinterest to pick out an idea for your family!