I started making these a few years ago (pre kids even!) after getting inspiration from all the usual places…Target and their beloved dollar section. A package of clothes pins numbered 1-24 where just screaming to be hung on twine with pictures from the year! And so the annual photo advent calendar was born!

When it was just Adam and me it was fun and all….I knew the pictures coming each day, but they were a surprise to him. But now that little Finny is part of the team…well let’s just say the advent calendar that used to come down around New Years….stays up all year long! You could say I’m ready for some new pictures this December 😉

I really love crafts and being creative, but just don’t prioritize it anymore. But at Christmas, even when I’m 34 weeks pregnant, the creative juices get flowing! I go through all of our pictures from the year (which is SO fun) and choose 48 pictures (because it’s IMPOSSIBLE to choose 24, so we have 2 a day on one clothespin). This is no easy feat dwindling down 48 of our best pics, which I say is a sign of a really happy life.

Little traditions like this that bring extra magic to the season are one of my favorite things about being a Mom

So, the “directions” :

• Make an album on your cell phone to put all of the possible photos in (you’ll likely end up with like 200. Good luck!)
• Dwindle down pictures to 24 or 48. If you want to flip two a day….and make your life easier with the dwindle, go with 48. You’ll just have to make the space for two pictures on one clothes pin.
• Print at CVS (or anywhere local….or online if you’re on it.). Print 2 pictures on a 4×6 and cut them in half. It’s the perfect size photo!
• Buy a package of wooden clothespins (ours are those cute small ones but the big ones work too!). Paint them if you have the time and energy, otherwise grab a green and red sharpie and write numbers 1-24 on the pins.
• Get some string or twine and get hanging! I hang all of the pictures upside down and in chronological order. Then each morning we flip!

I love to think of this tradition coming to life in homes all across the land. Happy advent calendaring!