‘Traditional’ advent calendars

[Minionbums]

I feel like a massive humbug saying this on a Christmas board…. But I’ve started to find the advent calendars just too much. They’re bigger and more expensive and by the time Christmas comes we’ve all got 24 presents already. If you get a smiggle advent calendar you can’t buy the kids stationary, they’ve already got it all!

What I’d like is a calendar for the kids like I remember from my childhood - a piece of chocolate and a sweet festive picture behind it. Maybe with a message about the meaning of Christmas, goodwill to all men. And for me, a nice paper one that doesn’t cost the earth, I can’t believe the price of them in my local garden centre.

Am I the only one??

[Botanica]

You might like advent of change. We did this last year.

adventofchange.com

[DuneFan]

Look for The Real Advent Calendar - chocolates and the nativity. We get ours from Sunday school but I think Tescos sell them.

Local cathedral does the just pictures one as does Fenwicks

[RidingMyBike]

I get traditional ones - window to open each day, Christmas story, no chocolate - at the local Christian bookshop for my DD and Godchildren. DD loves following the story unfolding each day

[DirtyDancing]

Have you got a local bookshop? Our one in London does beautiful German advents. Absolutely lovely, just with a picture behind each door.

[KittenKong]

Or go to a church Christmas card sale (or a church shop if there’s one nearby). They tend to have good old fashioned picture ones (with glitter)

[FourSeasonsTotalLandscaping]

www.lakeland.co.uk/40910/Bethlehem-Advent-Stable

We have this (I think back when we bought it it was £40-50 though!). We've had it for years and years and are all extremely fond of it.

[Sarcobaleno]

Another vote for the Divine ones. They're great.

[WeeM]

I always get dd one with just pictures, WH Smith always use nice ones as do John Lewis so we usually go and pick one together. About £6 usually but I don’t mind if it’s got nice pictures

[ShortColdandGrey]

My DH picked up one of the children's books advent calendar last year. It was a different Disney Christmas story at bedtime. My DD loved it and it will be reused this year, but her favourite one was the cheese advent calendar the her uncle bought her. She has asked for that again this year.

[crochetcrazy1978]

@FourSeasonsTotalLandscaping

https://www.lakeland.co.uk/40910/Bethlehem-Advent-Stable

We have this (I think back when we bought it it was £40-50 though!). We've had it for years and years and are all extremely fond of it.

I've had this one for years and love it. I put a gold coin choc in each day as well as the little figure. Always put baby Jesus in no 24

[FourSeasonsTotalLandscaping]

Yes definitely always Baby Jesus in number 24! For some reason I also always put the goat in number 1. You do have to think a bit carefully about the order they all go in or you risk a run of sheep every day for a week

[TheLovelinessOfDemons]

We only get the chocolate ones.

[swashbucklecheer]

The one I use with my DC is the same one I had as a child. It must be nearly 40 years old. It was passed to me when I moved out. It has the story of Christmas behind each window. Not a chocolate in sight.

[DappyApple]

I used to get dcs a picture one when they were little as this is what we had as children. The chocolate ones didn’t become a thing until they were a bit older.
Then I added a choc (£1) one alongside the picture one. But picture ones were getting harder to find and became quite expensive. So bought a reusable one from Phoenix Trading, about 12 years ago.
it’s a card scene, with 24 pictured pieces that you slot in to create the whole scene by Christmas Day.

This one was by far the favourite and still is even though dcs are now adults

But glad to see the traditional picture ones have come down in price.

[LorenzoVonMatterhorn]

Ive bought a traditional card one with just pictures behind the windows. The children had smiggle ones previously but theyve outgrown smiggle now. They can have a simple chocolate one.

[ItsReallyOnlyMe]

I'm not religious but I used to boycott the chocolate ones in favour of the picture kind (from WH Smith's usually) for my children.

They love the picture ones and still insist on them in adulthood. They even wanted me to send them to they university accommodations.

The kids had a felt advent calendar with pockets as well where they had a chocolate for each day so they didn't miss out.

[Alwaysroomforcake]

We were at a National Trust property today and they had a few traditional picture window calenders in their shop, including this one
shop.nationaltrust.org.uk/property-at-night-advent-calendar.html

[LadyMonicaBaddingham]

I get my proper Advent calendar from the local Christian bookshop.