Advent is nearly here! Don’t panic. I’ve found lots of great printable advent activities ranging from free, to not-free, and easy to more involved. The best part is they are all online and printable! No running to the store or trying to collect the right materials- all you’ll need for these crafts are some paper or cardstock. So, if you’re hoping for a beautiful Advent and just haven’t made it to the store yet- this post is just for you!
Journey through the Nativity
Over at Celebrating Holidays you can find a great downloadable ‘study’ on the Nativity. Each day you read about a different item or person in the Nativity. The download is $4.95, and is 70 pages long! There are coloring pages for each person, animal and thing (like gifts from the wisemen, and the stable), printable study pages on each, and a printable set of the people/animal/item that you can cut out and either glue or arrange on your fridge for fun.
Last year I printed the already colored version and put magnets on the backs so we could arrange and rearrange them on the fridge. My daughter probably spent hours doing this throughout advent last year (and into the new year until I took them down in February lol).
Catholic Icing’s Advent Saints Ornaments
Lacy and I worked together on these Printable Advent Saint Ornaments last year- and wow do I love them. This set is $5 and includes B&W and watercolored versions of 12 Saints whose feast days appear during Advent. They go along with Lacy’s Advent Christmas Planner. Our kids loved making and decorating these 3-D printable saint ornaments. 
Printable Advent Paper Chain
Check out this cute Printable Advent Paper Chain over at Catholic Toolbox. It’s FREE, it’s printable and it’s all strait line cutting (super easy with a paper cutter!) Print the three pages on purple paper, cut into strips and connect into a chain. Each day pull off one chain link and read what it says to do.
Nativity Advent Calendar
If Peg Dolls really aren’t your thing, then check out this Nativity Advent Calendar at Do Small Things. It’s 24 pages long for $5 and has all the characters in the Nativity to print and color. I think this would be great for your preschoolers or little kids. The characters are all big, so the spaces to color are big, which = easy for little kids. If you liked the idea of crafting through Advent, but you have children too small to do more complicated crafts then this could be for you.
Printable Nativity Set
Similar to the previous recommendation, Catholic Icing has a printable Nativity Set for FREE. These are also 3-D, but instead of standing up paper-doll style like the Do Small Things Nativity set, these roll into a tube. Also, with big spaces to color, this set is perfect for your preschooler and probably perfect for your purse since it’s free. How do you choose between the two? I dunno. They definitely have different styles, and the Do Small Things Nativity Set is set up to be an Advent Calendar, adding a character each day, so that’s pretty cool. But then this set is free… ah, just do both.
3-D Printable Jesse Tree Ornaments
Hopefully by now you’ve seen my 3-D Printable Jesse Tree Ornaments, but of course I’m mentioning them again! My e-book is 109 pages long and includes readings, instructions, pictures and 24 printable 3-D Jesse Tree Ornaments in both black and white AND digital color.
You can see more details and pictures of all the ornaments at this post, and purchase them in my shop here. They are perfect for those of you who’ve always wanted to start the Jesse Tree tradition in your own home, but have never gotten around to buying all the supplies for making the ornaments. You have no excuse not to start this fun activity this year! All you need is your printer and some cardstock!
Should I do all of them!? How do I choose?
I would recommend just doing one of the above, and it doesn’t even have to be my Jesse Tree ornaments. The most important part of Advent is preparing yourself through prayer, reading, and meditation for the birth of Christ! Crafts are a fun way to get your kids excited about the season, but they are not the primary focus. Use them as the extra/add-on/bonus fun thing. They are the side item in the meal compared to the ‘meat’ of prayer and refection.
So, check them out, think about which activity would fit your children and capabilities best and make it happen! (last minute or not!)
Wishing you a beautiful, faith-filled, and crafty Advent!
Kristen
