Advent is such a special time of the year, but as most of us know, it’s also such a busy and draining time. Even as I type this for you, I would be lying if I said that I haven't already stressed over presents and budgets at this point. Isn’t it strange to think that our modern world has drifted us so far from the true meaning of Christmas that we can easily let the happiest time of the year fill us with stress.

That is certainly not what Jesus intended. Imagine Mary preparing for the Lord’s arrival with overwhelm and stress. We do know that many new mothers are often anxious and worried but it’s so hard to picture Mary that way. Even with no room in the inn and even after a long journey while pregnant, I just don’t imagine that Mary was overwhelmed, frazzled or “over it.” I imagine that Mary had a heart that was fully ready and prepared for her son, our Lord, on that cold night.

While it may be easy to fall into the pressures of a worldly Christmas, if we just set our focus back on Christ and less on the budgets and gift lists, then perhaps we will feel the peace that Mary felt on that cold Christmas day.

Celebrating Advent with children is so fun and while we may do several different things here, none of them are overly complicated. Here’s a great list to celebrate Advent with your children:

The Jesse Tree - we have been doing this for years! My children love reading the small description that goes with the ornaments and there’s even correlating bible verses. The Jesse tree starts at creation all the way to the birth of our Lord. We use this one here.

An Advent Wreath - we typically light our wreath at breakfast on Sundays and read from an Advent book for children. This is a wonderful way to prepare each week for our Lord.

Saint Nicholas Day - we started celebrating this day a few years ago and my children love it! We just tell them that Saint Nicholas only comes to those who leave their shoes out on December 6. The children receive chocolate coins/Saint Nicks and sometimes a fun craft. Many people often leave oranges as well because fruit was a common gift back then. It is also fun to read a true story picture book on the life of Saint Nicholas so children can have a better understanding of the man that became known as Santa Claus.

Read a chapter from the book of Luke Daily - this year I am doing this on my own. There are various Advent bible plans out there but this can also be done with children as well.

Reading an Advent devotion or doing a unit study together - I often have my own devotional and this year we are doing Come to the Manger from Brighter Day Press. There are many beautiful unit studies out there created by homeschool mamas for homeschool families. However most studies can likely be tweaked for traditional school students as well.

Writing Scripture cards leading up to the birth of Jesus all month long - my children did this a few years ago and we still hang them up or read them. I love seeing their little handwritings from way back when.

Advent books - this is the first year that I finally wrapped our Advent books. In the past I didn’t do this as it felt like a waste, but I knew it would be exciting for our children. Most of our books are Jesus based or just cute farm stories and such, so even just reading this helps us bring the focus back to where it belongs. The children are loving the wrapped books this year!

Attending mass on Advent Sundays, Holy Days of obligation and penance - this is stating the obvious, but it still stands as a reminder that even in the busyness of this season, we should be putting our focus directly on Christ.

The Shepherd on the Search or Mary on the Mantle - If I could go back into time, I probably wouldn’t have an elf in our home. However, we do have an elf but now we also have the Shepherd on the search. Our shepherd (Charlie) is looking for baby Jesus and will find Him resting in the manger on Christmas morning.

Placing Jesus out Christmas Morning - On Christmas morning one of us will place Baby Jesus out in the manger (we have a large one basket for a beautiful ceramic baby Jesus under our tree) and then we have our regular nativity. We don’t sit out Jesus until Christmas morning. Having an empty manger all Advent is a reminder of the hope we feel while waiting for our Savior.

There are so many other ways to celebrate the Advent season from caroling to looking at Christmas lights and hot cocoa to Christmas classic movies, but most of all, we need to keep the Christ in Christmas. As cliche as it sounds, we have to do our part and create a hopeful heart that is preparing for the Lord.