If you saw our post on social media yesterday, you know that Kelly’s Kitchen is excited about providing communities and community members with access to healthier food options, accessible options, and inclusive food and rewards. With December officially in full swing, this is the time that many people who celebrate Christmas start their countdown to Christmas Day through the use of Advent Calendars.
Even if you do not celebrate Christmas, you may participate in other holidays that utilize a version of an advent calendar. For someone who celebrates Hannukah, they may create a version for the 8 days of Hannukah, where a gift or treat is provided for each of the 8 celebratory days.
It can be difficult and stressful to find an advent calendar that fits you, your family, or your child’s needs. For those with dietary restrictions or allergies, 24 days of candy can be harmful or unrealistic. For people who want a healthier or non-food related options, there are luckily lots of options for non-food-related advent calendars.
Two advent calendars that were pre-made and available at a retail store (TJ Maxx) were comprised of squishy small toys and sensory items. Both of these advent calendars were less than $15.00 each.
The sensory-friendly Holiday Advent Calendar (pictured below) was $14.99.
The small Smooshies Advent Calendar (also pictured below) was $7.99.
If you are creative and enjoy custom choosing the items that go in an advent calendar, and want to ensure there is a mix of toys, candy, and healthy snack alternatives, you can create your own advent calendar.
Items you will need:
- Multi-compartment containers for items to go into for up to 24 days.
Some people celebrate a 12-day. Advent calendar countdown, so you could find multi-compartment containers that fit for a 12-day time-period as well. The multi-compartment containers used for our make-your-own advent calendar have 9 various sized compartments. As a bonus they are clear (which allows items to be seen) and stackable. We purchased three of these containers from Dollar Store for $1.25 each (they are labeled as “plastic desk organizer cases” at the Dollar Store”.
See-through plastic containers are a great option for individuals who have anxiety or other disabilities where surprises can create conflict and negative emotions.
- Various toys, candy, snacks, self-care items (like lip balm) to put in each compartment.
Please note that the size of the compartments will dictate what items will fit in the spaces. This is why we are utilizing a multi-compartment container with various sizes.
In our make-your-own advent calendar kit we included the following items:
- 24-piece children’s puzzle from Dollar Tree ($1.25)
- Marvel Hulk Action Figure from Dollar Tree ($5) – we made sure The Hulk was holding carrots in our advent calendar to showcase that healthy snacks can be fun and good for your growing body!
- 4-count roll of Jurassic Park Stickers from Dollar Tree ($1.25)
- Small Bag of Gluten-Free Jacks Link Beef Jerky – Teriyaki Flavor from Dollar Tree ($1.25)
- Small Bag of Yogurt Covered Blueberries from Dollar Tree ($1.25)
- Baseball Playing Barbie Mini Figure from Dollar Tree ($1.25)
- Lip Balm from Dollar Tree ($1.25)
- 18-count Holiday Theme Erasers (snowman, Christmas tree, reindeer, etc.) from Dollar Tree ($1.25)
- Paw Patrol Mini Figure from Dollar Tree ($1.25)
- Glow in the Dark Squishable Sensory Toy from Dollar Tree ($1.25)
- Pusheen Magnetic Scene Set from TJ Maxx ($4.99)
- Assorted Holiday-Theme individually wrapped Milk Chocolate Candies from Dollar Tree ($3.00)
This DIY advent calendar cost a total of $27.99 before tax and took less than 30 minutes to put together. To determine what day each item would be opened, we used a dry erase marker to write numbers 1-24 on the top of the containers over each compartment.
These items were more than enough to create an interesting, dynamic, and varied Do-It-Yourself (DIY) advent calendar that utilized items with various textures, themes, and usability.
Who says holiday memories and activities have to be expensive?
If you like to create your own advent calendars, or end up utilizing this guide to create one of your own post on social media and tag us:
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Facebook: Kelly’s Kitchen
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