Activity advent calendar ideas

[Snoooozzze]

I saw a video a while ago about a make your own advent calendar of sorts which I thought was a great idea but can't for the life of me find the one I watched!

So the premise is 24 numbered envelopes to be opened one per day (obv!) and each envelope has a task, activity or trivia specifically related to Christmas. I have the envelopes and small cards for each day but I'm running short on ideas of what to put in them!

For context, this will be for DD(16yo) DH and I to enjoy, no little'uns at home and DH is scroogey so nothing too festive directed at him!

Any ideas?

Sorry, meant to add...

My ideas so far are:

Watch a Christmas movie
Hot chocolate with marshmallows (food/drink related I'll buy the bits so were prepared!)
Christmas trivia- I already have some Christmas facts books (don't judge me! )
Christmas themed game - funny ones like cards against humanity type maybe
Christmas day out- markets etc

I'm happy to repeat some of them but obviously don't want them to be too repetitive!

Go out for a walk after dark to see christmas lights (depends where you live though)
Make some sort of homemade sweet (like honeycomb etc)

Make a gingerbread house.
Go to a carol service.
Decorate the tree.
Donate to a food bank.
Enjoy mulled wine and a mince pie.
Make mince pies!
Make paper chains and put them up!

Make a Christmas themed mobile, eg Three ships, stars, Christmas trees.

Wear something Christmasy, hats, earrings etc

Listen to Christmas music, (or play it if you play instruments). You could do this with mulled wine!

Decorate a window in your house, eg tissue paper stained glass or silhouettes of three kings.

If there is a well known nativity painting at a local gallery, go to see it.

Buy a New Christmas Bauble
Go ice skating
Christmas crafts
Write Christmas. Adds
Make a Christmas Wreath

Christmas cards!

We do this although the kids are much younger. Some might still be relevant though. We tend to do all the usual festive jobs but put as an activity to seem more fun!
Decorate tree
Choose a bauble
Write to Santa
Write cards
Decorate wrapping paper
Take a gift to teachers (last day of term)
Movie night is each Saturday of December so gets repeated
Carol service
Visit Santa
Visit a light display (national trust or similar)
Read Christmas stories under the tree with hot chocolate
Walk around town to see the lights
Christmas jigsaw
Learn Christmas songs
Christmas dance party
Festive bath with bath bomb
Can't think of any more off the top of my head but might be some ideas you can use there

If you've the space, get a jigsaw with a winter scene and set it up where it can be left in situ, so it can be done in spare moments. You could put a box of biscuits with it.
Charity shops are a good source for cheap jigsaws.

Oh also, we go to the toy shop to pick a toy for mission Christmas and donate it. The children do one toy each. It's quite a learning experience choosing a toy, buying it and then putting it in the donation trolley and leaving empty handed. I do explain to them what we are doing and remind them to pick a toy for someone else but still!

We do this but DD is 2.5 so I'm not sure what I would do for big kids. How about
Christmas lights walk
Baking
Crafts
Write Christmas cards
Christmas markets
Panto
Put up tree
Christmas films
Make a shoebox gift to donate
Make a jingle bag to donate
Carol singing
Ice skating
Christmas escape room
Christmas board game (we have the snowman and Santa vs Jesus)
Look at old Christmas photos

Wow some great ideas there! Thanks

We usually do the usual chocolate calendar so this is the first year of something a bit different! I love the idea of a good deed in there! - I might do 2 points per card with one as a good deed each day!

I'm an avid baker so I have no idea why baking didn't occur to me either?!

I think I watched Katie Ellison on you tube she had sone something like this was a few years old but you should be able to view it. She had loads of good free ideas

We do a lot of the activities above and do a mix of activities and "things"; as things have evolved there are some things that happen the same every year (Christmas books come out on the 1st December, usually with a new one each, Christmas PJs on the 24th). We also have a lucky dip bag which has a mix of new stuff (e.g. tube of sweets) and recycled stuff (a christmas lego and jigsaw which comes out every year). Then about 3 trips (this year, Chatsworth, a christmas light show, night out in town for skating and a meal). A trip to the cinema to see Spirited, a couple of christmas films at home. Making gingerbread men and sausage rolls. School christmas fair, lights switch on in local town. Decorate Christmas tree. A christmas quiz. Hot chocolate in the garden with some sparklers (left over from bonfire night). I only put a week of activities in advance in so I can tweak for weather and if other things crop up.

Great ideas 💡