handmade advent calender

a few years ago i made an advent calender for my kids because i never found one i liked enough to buy already made.

this was a nearly impossible task for me. it required a lot of cutting and gluing, and cutting...

i did my best and the kids actually love it, so i guess that is all that matters. 

they get to put a new ornament on the christmas tree each day as it approaches christmas.

it is a simple joy, but they look forward to completing it each year.

 

thanksgiving count down!!!

well, october came and went!

 

and now we are counting down the days until thanksgiving...my favorite holiday!

 we got this adorable thanksgiving advent calender from pottery barn a few years ago and it has been a wonderful tradition that we look forward to every year!

 

a few years ago, all four of us wrote down several things that we are thankful for on the back of paper "turkey" feathers and we pull one out everyday leading up to thanksgiving and read it together.

 

once pulled, the feathers then go on tom the turkey!

he is not the prettiest turkey in the world, but my girls love him dearly :)

 it is fun to rediscover each year what we all wrote.

this was one of our latest feathers. 

my husband wrote this one referring to our cat.

 here he is laying in our new window seat.

family traditions are very special to us!

these guys are what i feel so grateful for everyday!

 

do you have any fun thanksgiving traditions leading up to the big day?