I’ve had an extra year to scout out some gooduns, and I think you’ll really love this list. I’m getting closer to our “forever list” where I will not be adding more books unless a real gem comes along my path. Without further ado, here is the list for our Christmas Book Advent this year…

My family and I have been enjoying this beloved tradition now for 4 years, and I finally feel like we are narrowing down our list to the “forever favorites”.

I can’t believe it’s time to start preparing our annual Christmas Book Advent, but here we are! This sure has been a crazy year, full of wild changes and unwelcome interruptions. I don’t know about you, but I’m looking forward to settling right down deep into our favorite family traditions- this book advent being one of them! I’m ready to to be wrapped up by these books like a worn out favorite blanket.

My struggles came out into the open and my brother and sister-in-law, along with many others, were able to get a front row seat. At first this was very difficult. I wanted to hide it all. I didn’t want to seem incompetent as a mother or my kids badly behaved or my marriage not enviable. But that’s not reality is it? Reality is that I can’t do it all. I mess up. I don’t know all the answers. My kids can be plain naughty. And marriage takes WORK. On the other side of the uncomfortableness of being seen as human, is the support we can give each other in our deepest valleys. And oh, is this something worth its weight in gold.

I have found that even though kids crave stability and structure, they are equally as resilient and able to change as long as the adults in their life help them through those transitions. Plenty of involvement and frequent talk about moving to a new home resulted in our toddler not being scared or resistant, but excited and ready to make the change!