25 Days of Christmas (5) - Read Aloud Advent Calendar

This post is from last year, but I am doing it again this year! It's an awesome way to get the kids excited about opening things leading up to Christmas, and they are so excited to read once they open up their book - enjoy!

I loved this idea. I saw this on another twin Mommy's blog, and totally stole it. But, I told her, and she is fine with it :) (aside, I met her online - she was one of my "infertile friends" - she now is the proud Mama to also-adorable boy/girl twins, born just a few days before Josh and Jules, and she lives close too, which is so cool)

Anyway, like I said, I LOVED this and decided to be a thief and steal it. It's called a Read-Aloud Advent Calendar. If you aren't familiar with it - you should be! You basically collect 24 Christmas or winter-themed books, wrap them up, and allow the child to unwrap one each day in December leading up to Christmas. Then you get to read the books together as they're unwrapped. I loved this because it's one thing to open every day, it's reading, and it's something we can all do together as a family. An added bonus for me this year is that they will start to learn what presents are and how to open them. Mine have Christmas coming up, and then their birthday right afterwards, so this way, they can dip their little baby toes into the "gift unwrapping" water.

Another REALLY cool thing is that I thrifted about 95% of these books. Books are a very major part of my babies life, and no lie, I bet I have hundreds of them. And 90% of those are thrifted, so when it came time to get them some Christmas/Holiday books, I went straight to a few thrift stores. And got them all! I had a few given as gifts last Christmas, and those are certainly special, but I am always amazed at the quantity/quality of thrifted books. So, here is what is wrapped up this year:

• Ho, Ho, Ho – A Christmas Peek a Boo book, - by Lark Carrier
• Is it Christmas Yet? By Amye Rosenberg
• Pooh’s Winter Music
• Santa’s Visit – A holiday Touch and Feel
• Snow Place Like Home, by Diana Manning
• Biscuit’s Pet and Play Christmas, by Alyssa Capucilli
• Can you See What I See? – The Night Before Christmas – by Walter Wick
• A Grouch’s Christmas (Sesame Street)
• Clifford’s Christmas Presents
• The Nutcracker Story
• The Stable Where Jesus Was Born, by Rhonda Greene
• All I Want for Christmas – by Nancy Parent
• The Night Before Christmas
• Frosty The Snowman
• The Sweet Smell of Christmas (scratch and sniff) Golden Books
• Pooh’s The Holiday Tree
• Pooh’s The Sweetest Christmas
• The Night Before Christmas Pop-Up Book
• Barney’s C is for Christmas
• Big Bird’s Tree  Trimming Party
• I Can’t Wait Until Christmas (Sesame Street)
• Christmas Tree – by David Martin
• Disney’s Mickey’s Christmas Carol
• Bob The Builder’s Bob’s White Christmas