One of the most anticipated Christmas activities at our house is our Christmas book countdown. All of our kids, currently ranging from 6 to 17, enjoy this nightly tradition to count down the days in December until Christmas. Even though most of the books are the same every year, there is an element of surprise since all of the books are wrapped. Half of the fun is getting to unwrap something before Christmas. The other half is the time spent together reading as a family.
I’ll share what we do and why using these favorite books as a countdown for Christmas is such a special tradition for our family. You know that I’m all about saving money, so I also have five money-saving tips to help you get started. If you need some ideas, I include the list of Christmas books that we currently use. I would love to hear some of your favorite Christmas books in the comments!
How our Christmas book countdown works
I use a very simple system that makes this meaningful family Christmas tradition something that takes very little effort.
When we set up our Christmas decorations each year, we get out our Christmas books and put them under the tree. Each night in December we open a book and read it together as a family. We take turns choosing a book to open, starting with the youngest on the first night and going up in age order each evening. After a book is opened, we display it on top of our long bookshelf so it’s accessible throughout the season.
When we take down our Christmas decorations in January, I wrap up each Christmas book so they are all ready for next year. Books pack very compactly, so I can fit all 25-30 books in a medium sized box. It’s so nice to have the books all ready to go when we unpack all of our Christmas things after Thanksgiving.
What makes a Christmas book advent calendar so special?
Our Christmas books only come out for the Christmas season. For the other 11 months of the year, these books are stored in the attic, wrapped and ready-to-go for next year. Every year my family looks forward to reading them, even though they already know all of the stories.
While they love all of the stories, each person has his or her favorite and tries to find it among all of the wrapped books. It’s not uncommon to find the kids sitting under the tree trying to guess which book is which by size and weight and feel so they know which one they want to open when it’s their turn.
While mom or dad often read books at bedtime to the younger kids all year long, Christmas story time is for the whole family. Even our teenagers will sit down and listen as we read from a classic Christmas favorite.
The year that we started this tradition, I wrote this poem for my kids and left it with the wrapped books under the Christmas tree.
Money-Saving Tips for Building a Christmas Book Countdown
Adding up the retail cost of all of our Christmas books might be hard to budget for all in one year, but don’t let that stop you from starting this tradition. Here are some ideas to implement this tradition without breaking the bank.
1- Start with what you have. Do you already have Christmas books on your shelf or stored with your Christmas decorations? Grab them and wrap them up to start this tradition.
2- Start with just a few books. Maybe for the first year, you open and read a Christmas book only on Sundays in December. Or you could start your countdown 5 days before Christmas or 12 days before Christmas. As the years go on, you can add in more titles.
3- Buy second hand. Check thrift stores or garage sales for Christmas books. Or if you want to easily search for specific titles from home, check out Thriftbooks. They have free shipping for orders over $15. They also have promotions where you can earn free books.
Did you know Amazon also sells used books? Look right below the price on the listing and you will see simple text that links to their used listings from other sellers. Look to see the condition that’s rated from fair to new. You may have to pay shipping, but the total is often much less than buying the book new.
4- Keep your eyes peeled all year long. Don’t just look at the thrift store and yard sales at Christmastime. Be on the lookout all year long. You might be surprised how many you’ll find! If you earn Amazon gift cards from Swagbucks or other reward sites, use that “free” money to buy Christmas books.
5- Suggest books as gift ideas. When family members ask for gift ideas, let them know you are working on building a Christmas library of books.
What Christmas books do you use?
You can use whatever your favorite holiday books are! We have a combination of religious and non-religious books. Here’s are our current line-up of favorite Christmas books. You can see them all in my Amazon Christmas book list or see them individually below.
Apple Tree Christmas by Trinka Hakes Noble
The Muppet Christmas Carol by Brooke Vitale
Christmas Farms by Mary Lyn Ray
The Christmas Miracle of Jonathan Toomey by
Holly & Ivy by Rumer Godden and Barbara Cooney
Christmas Day in the Morning by Pearl S. Buck
The Year of the Perfect Christmas Tree by Gloria Houston and Barbara Cooney
Christmas Tapestry by Patricia Polacco
Silver Packages by Cynthia Rylant
The Night Before Christmas by Clement Moore
Mr. Willowby’s Christmas Tree by Robert Barry
The Polar Express by Chris Van Allsburg
The Christmas Apron by Rachelle Pace Castor
The Twelve Days of Christmas by Alison Jay
A Christmas Carol & The Gift of the Magi by Charles Dickens, O. Henry
The Nutcracker Ballet by Vladmir Vagin
A Charlie Brown Christmas by Charles M. Schulz
How the Grinch Stole Christmas by Dr Seuss
A Little House Christmas Treasury by Laura Ingalls Wilder
Room for a Little One by Martin Waddell
The Donkey’s Christmas Song by Nancy Tafuri
Christmas with Anne by L.M. Montgomery
Bear Stays Up Late by Karma Wilson
The Little Drummer Boy by Ezra Jack Keats
The Scrawny Little Tree by Ed Mehler
The Carpenter’s Gift by David Rubel and Jim LaMarche
An Orange for Frankie by Patricia Polacco
What about you?
I would love to hear about your family’s traditions with Christmas books.
- What are your favorite Christmas books?
- Do you bring out the Christmas books seasonally or leave them out all year long?
- Does your family have a Christmas book countdown?
What a great idea. Our Christmas favorites are:
-The Night Before Christmas, the Classic Edition illustrated by Charles Santore
-Dream Snow by Eric Carle
-The Twelve Days of Christmas illustrated by Jan Brett
This is a great idea even if you don’t have kids! Another way to be cost effective is to borrow the books from the library. That way you can also surprise them with new stories they can get excited about without having to spend extra money. I also enjoy reading Hanukkah and other religious children’s books during the season. Thanks for sharing this idea! Happy Holidays ~ Gail