Home filled advent calendars

[Cuwins]

Can anyone who has an advent calendar you fill yourself- like one with the little drawers etc tell me what you have put in it?
Just looking for some ideas.

This morning the dc got a harry potter Xmas bauble (from studio).

Our calendar has buckets rather than drawers so I can get slightly bigger things in.

@Stompythedinosaur

This morning the dc got a harry potter Xmas bauble (from studio).

Our calendar has buckets rather than drawers so I can get slightly bigger things in.

That sounds better. I think I would struggle with really tiny.

Found ours to be a pain to be honest. Looks really pretty but the drawers are too small for anything much so you have to spend ages finding stuff and ends up being expensive. I've given up this year and done a Cadbury's one for £1.50. Sorry to be negative. If you want to stick to it, I would recommend buying a bag of chocolate coins and using those. We tried to avoid chocolate when we did it and it was just too much work. If you do try, small bouncy ball, Lego mini-figures, punch balloons, stamps, rubbers, or basically a trip to Poundland or hobbycraft and grab anything you think would fit. Good luck.

I get a load of Lindor balls and mini choc figures and choc orange segments or other chocs that are wrapped and just stuff 2 in each day. My DD’s are older and enjoy helping me fill it but mine is a fabric one so stretches a bit.
The 24th is always 2 medium/small Lindt Santa’s. It is more expensive than the normal chocolate ones but it’s our traditional one now so kept at it!

I gave up on ours as too faffy, but if you want to give something bigger on a particular day, then pop a written scavenger hunt type clue, and hide the gift somewhere in the house for them to find using the clue. Might reintroduce when dc are a bit older!

I had irritatingly small drawers in mine.

If you have a Lidl nearby I found that the little Favorina chocolate Santa's and teddy bears fitted.

DH and I scoffed too many in November so we bought a shop made chocolate one and left ours up in the attic.

When we did a large drawer one from Tiger (DD would have been about 9 or 10), I bought pairs of novelty socks/stationery/Haribo bags and a few bits of jewellery.

I have the Harry Potter Knightbus, drawers are tiny so I've only put in a Wurthers Original sweet into each one. It's just a bit of fun in this house, so not such a big deal.

I have also given up on ours as was a hassle. What we did do was write little notes about a Christmas themed thing we could do that day such as go and look at some Christmas lights, watch a Christmas movie, paint a Christmas bauble, cook some mince pies. That kind of thing.

Percy pig Xmas coins Might also put some Roses in as I’ve already bought a tin. Ours is a small pouches one though…

This year I did an assortment of crystals/rocks.

One year dc requested Japanese Twix bars in 24 different flavors.

Don’t do what I did. My two children share a cloth advent calendar (also get their own). I bought two Christmas themed jigsaw puzzles, put pieces in each pocket, no picture, they were to enjoy building the picture up and put in last pieces on Christmas morning. Took me ages to work out how many pieces to put in each pocket. Also had to be careful that child A who did days 1, 3, 5 etc had their jigsaw puzzle and child B who did days 2, 4, 6 had their jigsaw puzzle. My DD was furious, made it clear it was a horrible interpretation of advent calendar and not the very clever idea I thought it was. My DS just ignored it. I wound up doing one puzzle myself on Boxing Day.

Mine has a mixture of real coins and gold coins in it this year. We've had stampers, little bath toys, Christmas socks, matchbox sized cars, flashing lights necklace and bits over the last couple of years, but the chocolate always went down best so that's what I've stuck with. And this year he's developed a love for putting coins in the piggy bank so popped a few of those in too

I did a homemade advent calendar for one year only. It was a tree from hobbycraft, on which I hung little bags filled with things so I could fit slightly bigger things in.

It was still a faff though and I ended up getting stuff I could have put in stockings. It also ended up being quite expensive.

So last year the DC got a book advent calendar and this year a Playmobil one 😁

My eldest does still talk about the homemade one though with slightly wistful nostaglia (even though she was only 3 at the time!).

But yes, I second alternating days with chocolate coins!

Our family one has little elf hats, about the size to fit a king size chocolate bar in. I don't fill it with king size chocolate bars though, because I'm too cheap for that. I put a few wrapped chocolates in, though this year for the days that its the turn of my youngest, I've put it one chocolate and one small wooden doll because he broke/lost almost all of his. One year I did a few chocolates and then a bit of paper on which I wrote either a Christmassy activity to do that day (for the children) or a getting-ready-for-Christmas job to do that day (for me and OH). The first year we had it, when oldest was a toddler, I just filled each day with clementines because she fucking loved clementines

Have another self-filled calendar with much smaller pockets that's just for the youngest (oldest has a harry potter calendar) that I've filled with either one chocolate, or one lego figure as I found a bunch of old lego in the basement.

One year of utter madness I did four: two teenagers, a 3yo and a 7yo. Tiny compartments! Chocolate sprouts, erasers, jokes and riddles (written on coloured paper and rolled into scrolls), little wooden Christmas tree ornaments from Tiger, god knows what else. It was difficult finding things that worked for the teens, and that were safe for the youngest. DP and I got 4 photo booth shots of the two of us which I "framed" with sparkly tape; I was amused by that but I don't know if they were!

Aldi chocolate snowmen and bears. Come helpfully in a pack of 25 so one. I used to do toys, balls, notes and try and be more imaginative but they only want the chocolate. There are decorations to hang on the advent calendar but they are the same every year and come out as old friends now.

Because I’m poncetastic, I put some “activity” stuff in (eg “go and get the Christmas tree” rather than “clean the bathroom!”), and it’s a family one, so will add days for DH and me, too. Usually me abs DH I just reuse stuff we already have (scented tea light, spare guitar strings, or an activity slip like “steak for dinner” or “No work today ... it’s the weekend!” type stuff). Otherwise...
Chocolate
Stationary
Individual Sudoku puzzle (usually taken from newspaper, I’m a mean parent),
Lip balm
Hair ties/slides
Biscuit cutter

We have this one from hobbycraft this year.

www.hobbycraft.co.uk/christmas-fillable-advent-calendar/653781-1000?query=advent-calendar

The compartments are very generous in size, I've filled it with various wrapped chocolates like lindors, malteser truffles, heroes and celebrations, can easily fit 5 in each compartment. Lindt chocolate teddies for the 24th.

@TrueGrit54

Don’t do what I did. My two children share a cloth advent calendar (also get their own). I bought two Christmas themed jigsaw puzzles, put pieces in each pocket, no picture, they were to enjoy building the picture up and put in last pieces on Christmas morning. Took me ages to work out how many pieces to put in each pocket. Also had to be careful that child A who did days 1, 3, 5 etc had their jigsaw puzzle and child B who did days 2, 4, 6 had their jigsaw puzzle. My DD was furious, made it clear it was a horrible interpretation of advent calendar and not the very clever idea I thought it was. My DS just ignored it. I wound up doing one puzzle myself on Boxing Day.

Ha! No, I think everyone tries this ONCE and then goes for the cheap chocolate one thereafter. Fwiw I put in: Hair scrunchies Earrings Novelty erasers (covered 6 days) Tiny Christmas tree decorations (covered about 6 days) Crystal angel Choc coins Mini choc elfs (covered a few days) Tiny ceramic cat (from a doll’s house) Tiny Christmas tree (ditto) Tiny fridge magnet Novelty light-up Christmas elf pendant from pound shop

This year you could try some small or bendy fidget toys.

For an item that wouldn’t fit I left a note with a “clue” as to where it was hidden. NB Don’t leave the clue but forget to put the item in the right place.

I buy a creator lego set (about £12) and then split the pieces into all the different drawers (in the right order). Much cheaper than a proper lego calendar and ds has a decent lego model at the end of it rather than lots of rubbishy tiny bits.

Thanks everyone. I like the look of one and was thinking of getting one for the future but wasn't sure how much I would be able to find to go in it.

You could always remove the chocs from a cardboard calendar and put them in your nice calendar.

We have ones with pockets. I just put a chocolate coin in each pocket. The foil's recyclable as a bonus. Or any pre wrapped sweets like Celebrations or those little chocolate Santas. One sweet a day is hardly a binge and they are nicer than the little waxy lumps of chocolate in the pre made calendars.

No way have we got time to fill up with jigsaw pieces, jokes, pieces of tat I'm afraid. But nobody has complained.

Just to clarify I don't have any objection to chocolate in them or basic chocolate ones. Might end up going that route was just wondering about other ideas.