Advent is here again

Just thought I'd share this year's Advent Carnival with anyone who reads this. Don't know what a carnival is? Well, its just a collection of like-minded bloggers sharing their thoughts on celebrating Advent and even a few links with good ideas. You might also like this article about how Christmas has gobbled up Advent.

As for us, I decided to make a better Advent by getting ready earlier. So, I'm almost done with my Christmas shopping and spent some extra time cleaning our house when I was getting ready for Thanksgiving. We are also doing something on St. Nicholas day for the first time this year. I've really enjoyed researching some of the traditions and find myself wishing we knew more about the real St. Nicholas all along. Be sure to check out the Saint Nicholas Center website and their section just for kids if you are interested in learning more about the true story. Another thing I'm looking forward to is reading the family devotional, Bartholomew's Passage, and lighting our Advent candles together. A few years ago, we read and loved a book called, Jotham's Journey by the same author, so I'm really excited about reading this sequel. And, since my house is cleaner than usual it should be easier to put the Advent decorations out tomorrow.

This is the time to prepare for Christ's coming as a little baby and coming again.