Advent begins two weeks from today! This weekend I spent a little time sorting through our Christmas books to fill this year’s Advent Book Basket. I love that Christmas falls on a Sunday this year and we will all be able to enjoy FOUR COMPLETE WEEKS of Advent this year, the longest Advent possible!
Advent varies in length from 22-28 days, beginning with the Sunday nearest to the feast of St. Andrew the Apostle (November 30th) and embracing four Sundays. The first day of Advent can fall as early as November 27th or as late as December 3rd.
Years ago, when we didn’t have enough Christmas themed picture books to wrap one for each day of Advent, I would check some Christmas books out from the library just before Advent began, using Christmas Mosaic as a guide. We have added many books to our home library since then, giving one Christmas themed book to each of our children on the feast of St. Nicholas, and our collection has definitely grown…
In the past I have filled our basket with Christmas Mosaic titles and our children’s 35 Favorite Christmas Picture Books. Last year I pulled out twenty-six of my favorites to wrap up.
This year I was having a really hard time choosing — way too many options — so I asked my husband and oldest daughter to help pick out twenty-eight books for this year.
A couple years ago I switched to brown paper, instead of the purple and pink wrapping paper, along with purple and pink ribbon (which I saved to re-use again this year) and homemade labels for each day. I love it! So simple and pretty.
If you’d like to use my little labels too, you can download my Advent Book Basket Labels for 2016 over at Dropbox.
As always, we’ll unwrap and read one book each night during Advent, following our family rosary. The rest of the books will be placed in additional baskets for the kids to read whenever they’d like during the seasons of Advent and Christmas.
Note: As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases.
Here are the 28 picture books that I am wrapping up for our 2016 Advent Book Basket:
November 27 – 1st Sunday of Advent: A Christmas Manger (Punch-Out-And-Play Books) (OOP)
November 28: Cobweb Christmas: The Tradition of Tinsel*
November 29: The Cobweb Curtain: A Christmas Story (OOP)*
November 30 – St. Andrew: Waiting for Christmas: A Story about the Advent Calendar * (Note: Even though most commercial Advent Calendars begin on December 1st, Advent varies in length from 22-28 days, beginning with the Sunday nearest to the feast of St. Andrew the Apostle (November 30th) and embracing four Sundays. The first day of Advent can fall as early as November 27th or as late as December 3rd.)
December 1: Spider’s Gift: A Christmas Story and A Gospel Advent Calendar (NEW additions)
December 2: Apple Tree Christmas
December 3: Cranberry Christmas
December 4 – 2nd Sunday of Advent: The Gift of the Christmas Cookie
December 5: The Legend of the Candy Cane (OOP – Newly Illustrated Edition available here.)
December 6 – St. Nicholas: The Legend of St. Nicholas
December 7: How the Grinch Stole Christmas
December 8 – Immaculate Conception: The Legend of the Christmas Rose (OOP)
December 9: Snowmen at Christmas
December 10: Kristoph and the First Christmas Tree
December 11 – 3rd Sunday of Advent/Gaudete Sunday: Bambinelli Sunday: A Christmas Blessing
December 12 – Our Lady of Guadalupe: Our Lady of Guadalupe (also love this awesome pop-up)
December 13 – Santa Lucia Day: Lucy: A Light for Jesus (really love Lucia: Saint of Light)
December 14: Baboushka: A Christmas Folktale from Russia (OOP)
December 15 – Rose’s Birthday: The Three Gifts of Christmas
December 16 – Las Posadas: Nine Days to Christmas (OOP)
December 17 – O Sapientia: The Stable Where Jesus Was Born (Note: The one star review over at Amazon does not correctly reflect the text printed in our book – ISBN 0-439-47019-6, 2000 Edition OOP. Perhaps it is referring to a different edition… I’m not sure. Ours is such a sweet book.)
December 18 – 4th Sunday of Advent / O Adonai: Manger
December 19 – O Radix Jesse – Bud’s Birthday: Miracle of the Poinsettia
December 20 – O Clavis David: Confederate Night Before Christmas
December 21 – O Oriens: Shooting at the Stars: The Christmas Truce
December 22 – O Rex Gentium: Small Camel Follows the Star (OOP)
December 23 – O Emmanuel: Song of the Stars: A Christmas Story
December 24 – Vigil of Christmas: The Night Before Christmas
* = Study Guide Available in Christmas Mosaic
Here’s the link to my Christmas Mosaic Review and the Featured Booklist.
For additional Christmas book suggestions you can find some of our lists in the archives:
You can find the rest of our booklists here.
For More Details About Christmas Mosaic:
Christmas Mosaic :: A Review & Featured Book List
.: Giveaway :.
I’m hosting giveaways every weekend of November this year, leading up to the first Sunday of Advent on November 27th. This weekend I have five prizes to give away, all perfect to help build your own family’s Advent and Christmas book collection!
Prize #1: Christmas Mosaic and Winter Seasonal Book of Days
sponsored by author Cay Gibson (value $31.99)
Congratulations, JoAnn B!
Congratulations, JoAnn B!
Prize #2: Christmas Mosaic
sponsored by Sacred Heart Books & Gifts (value $18.00)
Congratulations, Laura G!
Congratulations, Laura G!
Prize #3: A Gospel Advent Calendar and The Christmas Star
sponsored by Ignatius Press (value $17.98)
Congratulations, Heidi O!
Congratulations, Heidi O!
Prize #4: The Three Gifts of Christmas
sponsored by Catholic Child (value $15.95)
Congratulations, Jessica K!
Congratulations, Jessica K!
Prize #5: Spider’s Gift: A Christmas Story
sponsored by Pauline Books & Media (value $14.95)
Congratulations, Trisha S!
Congratulations, Trisha S!
Enter the giveaway using the Rafflecopter box below:
There is still time to enter the St. Nicholas Giveaway if you haven’t already!
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