12/13/2024
In my Bible Study the other morning we talked for a while on how to bring the true meaning of Christmas back for our kids. Kids are surrounded with Elves that magically move about their house, Santa who brings gifts Christmas morning, and toy catalogs promoting greed within their hearts. So the challenge if you’re a Christian parent is how to point kids to Jesus and not to the worldly view of Christmas. Don’t get me wrong, I love many of the traditions that surround Christmas and want my kids to experience the magic I felt as a child. But it’s become increasingly more important to me that we spend time reflecting on the gift of Jesus’ birth and also be grateful for everything He has provided (and less on what we “need”). The best way I’ve found to do this with my kids is through play. Kids learn everything better through play. They also crave time with their parents in play. So sit down with a nativity play dough kit, or sensory box, and tell the story of Jesus’s birth as they play. It might seem like they aren’t listening, but I can guarantee that the message is getting into their hearts. We also have a “stuffed” nativity set my kids love playing with. And the .co advent blocks have been a game changer for us this season. My kids look forward to that time together every night (they also get rewarded with chocolate at the end from their advent calendars so that could also be it 😂).
My nativity duck sensory box is the perfect starter set for any kid. There is a bag of rice, a jar of cinnamon play dough, a rolling pin, mini tongs, a cute book telling the Christmas Story from the animals’ perspective, and of course all the main characters of the story (in rubber duck form). I included pom-poms to use with the mini bamboo tongs (such incredible fine motor and hand strength work).