Our Advent with PlayMo

We've moved right along in December and Christmas is fast approaching! 

I wanted to share a bit about what we're doing for Advent as I've been having fun with this year's Advent calendar (of sorts). Truth be told, I've not been very consistent about it. I'm embarrassed to admit that despite my good intentions, I've been doing the opposite and getting caught up with the things I said I wanted to avoid. Not good at all. It's only in the past week that I've taken some time to re-align myself and I hope be able to see out the rest of the year in good form.

We started Advent a little late as we were away on a cruise during the early part of December. But while we were away, the husband helped me put together a box, out of Lego, naturally.

This was to be our Advent "calendar". How it works is very simple: Every day, I would hide the box and the kids would do a treasure hunt to find it. And what would they find inside? 

A piece of our nativity scene. In this case, it's the angel Gabriel. I selected pieces to represent different parts of the Christmas story. I had this grand plan to build a nativity out of Lego, only to remember that we had purchased a Playmobil nativity after Christmas last year. (Yes, it was on discount!) So rather than re-invent the wheel, we're using the Playmobil set.

So we started with the angel Gabriel who appeared to Mary to tell her of the blessing she was about to receive, to bear a son conceived of the Holy Spirit. The next day the kids were given Mary and we read of her song of praise to the Lord. Following that, they got Joseph and we read the portion of scripture where Joseph was troubled and the angel visits. And so on.

I used the following suggested readings from a BSF handout guide, expanding and using other passages to supplement these as appropriate:

Suggested reading of the Christmas story

• A Saviour King is Promised -- Isaiah 7:14; 9:6-7; Jeremiah 23:5; Micah 5:2-5a
• The Angel Visits Mary -- Luke 1:26-38
• The Angel Visits Joseph -- Matthew 1:18-25
• The Trip to Bethlehem and Stable Lodging -- Luke 2:1-7
• The Christ Child is Born --  Luke 2:6-7
• The Angels Visit the Shepherds -- Luke 2:8-14
• The Shepherds Visit the Manger -- Luke 2: 15-18
• The Wise Men Travel to Jerusalem -- Matthew 2:1-8
• The Wise Men Worship the Christ Child -- Matthew 2:9-12
• The Trip to Egypt -- Matthew 2:13-15

Some of the truths to share with the children from these readings

• Christmas is the day we celebrate the Lord Jesus' birthday
• Long ago, God promised to send a Saviour King
• God promised that the Saviour King would be born in Bethlehem
• God always keeps His promises
• Christmas is the time God kept His promise to send a Saviour
• Mary was the Lord Jesus' mother, but His Father was the Almighty God in heaven
• God shows people how to find the Lord Jesus
• God always knows what is best for His people

Like I said, I have not been very consistent, but the kids have done a good job reminding me about their "Playmo box" as they called it, and asking me to get it ready for them to hunt down. Our nativity has thus filled out nicely.

There are still a few pieces to go but we're nearly there. As for my kids, I think they've learnt something along the way too. They've enjoyed messing around with the pieces, for sure!

Looking forward to Christmas!