I’m the first to say that advent calendars are so fun! I mean you’re waiting for a special day and you get to countdown by opening and getting a little treat on each day that you countdown, that’s a win win! Last year my mom got the kids a lego advent calendar and they really enjoyed it. But this year I was thinking of something a little different. A Kindness Advent Calendar.

I should probably let you know that we are only doing a 13 day Kindness Advent Calendar. The reason being is that although we do enjoy the holiday season and we put up a tree, we don’t actually celebrate Christmas. However, we do have a special occasion we celebrate on December 13th, hence a 13 day advent calendar. (But I will share more than 13 ideas so that you’ll have more than enough to fill a 25-day Kindness Advent Calendar.

The reason I decided to go for a kindness advent calendar this year is that I wanted to take the focus away from things and stuff. The kids will be getting a present from us and from their grandparents, so I thought for the advent calendar, it would be nice to focus on being kind and doing things for others.

Our DIY Kindness Advent Calendar:

I made a very basic DIY Kindness Advent Calendar.  I took plain white envelopes.
On the envelopes, I wrote the numbers/date. Then I decorated the envelopes with festive winter and holiday stickers.

Then on some scrap paper, I wrote the different acts of kindness for the kids to do. I took into account what day of the week it was and if they had any activities. That way the more involved ones could be on the weekend or a less busy day etc.
After that I took some thick string and clothes pins I’d bought from the dollar store and hung the calendar on the wall. It was really that simple.

For more DIY Advent Calendar Ideas (that are a little fancier too) here are some options:

• Muffin Tin Advent Calendar
• Wall Chart Advent Calendar
• Hanging Advent Calendar

Kindness Advent Calendar Note Ideas:

And now for the Kindness Ideas to put into each day of your Kindness Advent Calendar:
–  call a family member to say hi and to ask about their day
– bring your teacher a tea or coffee
– write a kind note to somebody
– visit a seniors home
– visit a pet shelter
– put books in an outdoor mini library
– put money into a parking meter
– deliver baked goodies to your neighbours
– hand out candy canes to people at the mall or anywhere you like
– write kind chalk messages on the sidewalk
– Make a list of things you are grateful/thankful for
– Go through your toys (or clothes or books) and donate what you don’t need to those who might need them.
– Buy a new toy, wrap it and donate it
– Compliment someone
– Tell someone you don’t know, to have a nice day
– Mail a postcard to a friend or family that lives in another town
– Call someone to tell them a joke or make them laugh
– Draw a nice picture for someone special and give it to them
– Clean up a mess you didn’t make
– Bake  and deliver treats to your local fire station
– Pick up litter in your neighbourhood or at your school
– Tell your mom, dad, siblings, one thing you love about them
– visit the local children’s hospital with a treat for the kids and/or nurses
– Smile at everyone you see for the whole day
– Surprise a family member and do a chore that they usually do
– Give everyone in your family a hug, just like that

Those are some of my favourite ideas for a homemade kindness advent calendar. For those of you who are using calendar that already had treats, one idea would be to write out little kindness ideas and then put them in each day. That way when your kids open the calendar each day, they have a treat and an act of kindness to do!

If you liked this post, you might also like:
– Homemade Ornaments to make with your kids
– The Truth About Santa
– DIY Holiday Cards
– 5 Holiday Cookie recipe you need to try