My Favorite Advent and Nativity Sets

Confession. I have been coveting one of my best friend's advent wall hangings now for several years. I know it's a sin, and I'm so thankful for the blood of Jesus, or I'd be a goner.

Anyway, I asked her to leave it to me in her will.  Isn't that morbid? The fact is...That advent was made for ME.  It matches my house and Christmas decor, and Pottery Barn doesn't make it anymore.  I scoured ALL the Internet sources for one to no avail. I had given up hope.

(Queue the radiant beams from heaven, and "Hallelujah Chorus" music)

Then, one Sunday, out of the blue, I received a gift. A very special gift.  It was my coveted quilt.  My friend gave it to me sacrificially, and ordered a different one.

(Queue Whitney Houston's "That's What Friends are For")

I feel blessed beyond words!

Here's what it looks like:

It has 25 pockets with a number sewn on each one.

Each morning the kids race out to open the next pocket and see what's inside.

The wall hanging has grommets across the top, and I made the board to hang it on.

I took a piece of wood and routered the edges.  Then I spray painted it barn red.

Next, I sanded the edges to give it that "aged look", and put on a coat of Ralph Lauren Smoke glaze to age it even more. (Love that stuff!)

I used my Cricut cutter to cut out the vinyl letters, and applied them to the board.

Finally, I measured the distance between the grommets, and drilled holes in my board.

I bought some inexpensive drawer knobs and attached the quilt with them so that I could easily unscrew the knobs and remove the quilt for storage purposes.

I think it gives the quilt a polished look.  I love it to pieces!

It matches my tree skirt, and....

our Wrangler stockings!

Alright, enough about my new favorite treasure.  Here are some of my beloved Nativity sets.  Remember, I've got a rustic, cowboy country house so nothing elegant would look right.

Here is one that I painted on wooden blocks when my son was still a toddler.  He could play with them to his heart's content and carry them around the house.  They are indestructible!

Next, I gave birth to my girls, and they like playing with stuffed animals, so I sewed them this nativity set.  I found the Nativity material online, and ordered a panel.  Then I cut the pieces out, sewed, stuffed, and voila!  A stuffed nativity set for the kids to enjoy!  Again, this is pretty indestructible. I put this one under our Christmas tree, and the kids love to play with it under the twinkly lights of the tree.

Here is a nativity wall hanging that was given to me.

Here's one that I keep in the guest bathroom.  It lights up, so I use it as a nightlight in there on the counter.

Here's another one given to me as a gift.  I just love its country cuteness!

I'm always on the lookout for new crafty looking Nativity sets!