A Simple, Slow, and Intentional Advent Calendar for Families with Teenagers
Advent changes when your children become teenagers.
For years, December might have been filled with little traditions designed almost entirely around them.
Advent calendars opened before breakfast. Christmas crafts spread across the kitchen table. Letters to Santa. Christmas stories before bed. School concerts. Visits to see Santa. Tiny hands hanging three decorations from the same branch of the Christmas tree.
And then, almost without noticing when it happened, Christmas changes.
There are still school mornings and Advent calendars, but now there are exams and homework and sports and friends and Christmas nights out.
They have their own plans.
Their own music.
Their own ideas about Christmas.
And sometimes absolutely no interest whatsoever in the lovely festive activity you thought everybody might enjoy doing together.
That’s okay.
Because Advent with teenagers doesn’t have to be about trying to recreate the Christmases we had when they were small.
It can become something new.
Perhaps a little less organised.
A little less elaborate.
And, in some ways, much more relaxed.
Instead of trying to fill every day of December with an activity, we can simply create little opportunities to be together.
A Christmas film.
Something baking in the kitchen.
A drive to see the lights.
Music playing while dinner is being made.
An evening wrapping presents.
A walk.
A board game.
A cup of hot chocolate after school.
Twenty minutes making something at the kitchen table.
And sometimes, nothing at all.
That’s the idea behind this simple Advent calendar for families with teenagers.
24 gentle invitations for the days leading up to Christmas.
Not 24 obligations.
Not 24 elaborate activities.
And definitely not another December challenge you’re supposed to complete.
Just ideas.
Take the ones that suit your family.
Change the others.
And leave plenty of room for Christmas to happen by itself.
A Different Kind of Advent Calendar for Teenagers
When we think of Advent calendars, we often think of something children open every morning.
And there’s absolutely nothing wrong with chocolate Advent calendars — teenagers are generally very enthusiastic about those. 😂
But I also love the idea of Advent as something the whole family can quietly participate in.
Not necessarily by gathering ceremoniously around the kitchen table every evening.
Just by having a little collection of ideas to draw from throughout December.
Some days involve doing something together.
Some involve noticing the season.
Some encourage generosity.
Some are simply about making an ordinary December evening feel a little different.
And some deliberately ask almost nothing of us.
Because December is already full.
Our Free Slow & Intentional Advent Calendar
I’ve created a new version of our 24 Days of Advent Calendar for families with teenagers and older children.
There is one simple idea for every day from December 1st to Christmas Eve, but please consider the dates extremely flexible.
Swap them.
Skip them.
Do three things in one weekend.
Ignore a week entirely.
Write your own ideas over mine.
This is your family’s Advent.
24 Days of a Slow & Intentional Advent
Twenty-four simple invitations for enjoying the weeks before Christmas with teenagers and older children — without filling every evening with another thing to do.
Download the Free Advent Calendar
Print it for the fridge, tuck it into your Christmas binder or simply use the ideas below whenever you need one.
24 Slow & Intentional Advent Ideas for Families with Teenagers
December 1 — Put on the Christmas Music
Start simply.
Ask everybody to choose a few songs for a family Christmas playlist.
You’ll probably end up with a strange mixture of old favourites, songs from your own childhood and things your teenagers insist are Christmas songs despite your considerable doubts.
Let them stay.
Part of having older children is allowing new traditions to come into the family rather than only handing old ones down.
CHRISTMAS COMPANION: If music is a big part of Christmas in your house, Christmas Music Companion.
December 2 — Make Something Warm to Drink
Hot chocolate.
Tea.
Coffee.
Whatever everybody actually likes.
You could make something elaborate with cream and marshmallows, or you could make a pot of tea.
Sit down together if people are around.
If they’re not, enjoy yours anyway.
Advent doesn’t fail because everybody isn’t participating simultaneously.
December 3 — Choose Your Christmas Films
Ask everybody to nominate one Christmas film they’d really like to watch this year.
Write them down.
That’s your Christmas movie list.
You don’t need to watch twenty-seven Christmas films before December 25th.
Choose a handful that people genuinely want to see.
And yes, debate over whether Die Hard counts as a Christmas film may commence.
RELATED: 12 Christmas Movies to Watch with Teens (That You’ll Love Too!)
CHRISTMAS COMPANION:Christmas Movie Companion
December 4 — Bring a Little of Winter Indoors
Gather some suitable greenery from the garden or a walk.
Put branches in a jug.
Add a little greenery to the mantel.
Gather pinecones.
Dry some orange slices.
No major decorating project required.
Sometimes one little seasonal change is enough.
RELATED: Natural Christmas Decorations You Can Make at Home – 15 Simple Ideas
December 5 — Do One Quietly Kind Thing
Leave something for a neighbour.
Donate to a local food appeal.
Send a message to someone you haven’t spoken to in a while.
Support a Christmas charity.
Buy something for a giving tree.
Or simply notice somebody who could use a little help.
Nobody needs to know.
December 6 — Bake Something Everyone Likes
This doesn’t need to be a traditional Christmas recipe.
Make cookies.
Brownies.
Cinnamon biscuits.
Scones.
A ginger cake.
Whatever people will actually eat.
Teenagers are also old enough to do quite a lot of the baking themselves, which is one of the considerable advantages of this stage.
Invite them into the kitchen.
And let them take over if they want to.
RELATED: 15 Christmas Baking Ideas – Cookies, Cakes & Festive Treats
You’ll also find my free Christmas Baking Companion there for gathering favourite recipes and planning a little festive baking.
December 7 — Leave the Evening Empty
Yes.
This is an Advent activity.
Don’t plan anything.
Let everyone do their own thing.
Read.
Watch television.
Disappear upstairs.
Play games.
Go to bed early.
One of the kindest things we can give ourselves in December is an evening that doesn’t require us to make the most of it.
December 8 — Make One Christmas Decoration
One.
Not an entire craft afternoon unless everybody is enjoying themselves.
Make a twig star.
A dried-orange decoration.
A paper snowflake.
A salt-dough ornament.
A simple piece of greenery.
Put some music on and leave the materials on the table.
Teenagers are far more likely to join something that looks inviting than something announced as FAMILY CHRISTMAS CRAFT TIME AT 3PM. 😂
Christmas Crafts Companion
If you’d like some easy ideas for making something together this Christmas, explore our free Christmas Crafts Companion.
Explore the Christmas Crafts Companion
December 9 — Go to See the Christmas Lights
Walk or drive.
Bring a flask if you fancy.
Put the Christmas playlist on.
Visit somewhere known for its lights or simply wander around your own area.
Ask everyone to choose their favourite.
It’s one of the easiest Christmas traditions to keep as children grow because it doesn’t feel particularly childish.
It’s just nice.
December 10 — Look Through Old Christmas Photographs
Find the Christmas photographs from ten years ago.
Or fifteen.
Show your teenagers the versions of themselves they don’t remember.
Look at old decorations.
Old houses.
Grandparents.
Pets.
The Christmas jumper somebody wore every year.
The enormous toy somebody desperately wanted and then barely touched.
Family Christmas isn’t only about creating new traditions.
Sometimes it’s about remembering where we’ve already been.
December 11 — Wrap a Few Presents Together
Clear the kitchen table.
Gather the paper, tape, scissors and ribbon.
Put music on.
Wrap.
People can disappear when they’re wrapping gifts for each other and return when the coast is clear.
Teenagers can take responsibility for wrapping the presents they’ve chosen.
And nobody needs to finish all the Christmas wrapping tonight.
A few presents count.
December 12 — Let Your Teenager Choose
This is their Advent too.
Ask:
What would you like us to do together before Christmas?
Then listen.
It might not be what you’d choose.
Perhaps they want takeaway and a film.
A shopping trip.
A particular meal.
A board game.
To go into town.
To bake something.
To invite a friend over.
Great.
Family traditions don’t have to originate with the adults.
A Little More Christmas Together
Around the middle of Advent is where I’d introduce your Christmas Family Companion.
Not because families need more activities.
Because sometimes it’s useful to have a few ideas ready for the evenings when everybody does happen to be around.
Free Christmas Family Companion
A collection of easy ideas for enjoying Christmas together, including Christmas Together ideas, Family Bingo, Conversation Cards, Memory Jar prompts and slips, traditions to try and a Christmas Kindness Challenge.
Choose a page.
Use three.
Ignore the rest.
Explore the Free Christmas Family Companion
December 13 — Have a Christmas Film Night
Now choose one from the list you made earlier.
Turn off the big light.
Bring out the blankets.
Make something nice to eat.
And watch the film.
That’s the entire plan.
No themed snack board necessary.
December 14 — Take a Winter Walk
December isn’t only Christmas.
It’s winter too.
Go outside.
Walk somewhere familiar.
Take the dog.
Notice the bare trees, early darkness, low light and cold air.
The weeks before Christmas can become so focused on preparing for December 25th that we forget to inhabit December itself.
RELATED: Christmas Walks and Nature Companion
December 15 — Make Something From Your Own Childhood Christmas
Introduce your teenagers to something you loved.
A film.
A recipe.
A television Christmas special.
A song.
A game.
A decoration.
They may love it.
They may be deeply unimpressed.
Both outcomes are interesting.
Then let them introduce you to something from their Christmas.
Traditions can travel in both directions.
December 16 — Have Dinner by the Christmas Tree
It doesn’t have to be Christmas dinner.
Pizza counts.
So does pasta.
So does a takeaway.
Move somewhere different if that’s practical, or simply switch off the kitchen lights and leave the Christmas tree glowing in the next room.
Ordinary things can feel surprisingly special when we change the setting slightly.
December 17 — Choose One Family Tradition to Keep
As children grow, not every tradition needs to survive.
But some are worth deliberately keeping.
Ask everybody:
What would Christmas not feel quite right without?
The answers might surprise you.
Perhaps it’s a particular meal.
A film.
Going somewhere.
A decoration.
Christmas Eve dinner.
A book you’ve read for years.
Keep what still matters.
Let the rest evolve.
RELATED: 12 Meaningful Christmas Traditions to Start with Teens or Grown-Up Kids
The free Christmas Traditions Companion is lovely for this — it includes pages for recording traditions you already love, new ones you’d like to begin and little Christmas moments you want to remember.
Explore the Christmas Traditions Companion
December 18 — Make a Tiny Christmas Bucket List
Emphasis on tiny.
Ask everybody to choose one thing they’d still like to do before Christmas.
If there are four of you, you now have four things.
Perfect.
You don’t need a list of 75 festive experiences.
The aim is to make room for what people actually care about.
Free Christmas Bucket List Companion
Use our Christmas Bucket List Companion to gather the handful of things your family would genuinely enjoy doing this season.
Explore the Christmas Bucket List Companion
December 19 — Do Something Ordinary Together
Cook dinner.
Walk the dog.
Drive somewhere.
Fold washing while talking.
Go to the supermarket.
Sit at the kitchen table.
Not every family moment needs a Christmas activity attached to it.
Sometimes being together while life is happening is enough.
December 20 — Play Something
Cards.
A board game.
A quiz.
A ridiculous game somebody found online.
Choose something everybody understands and nobody needs forty-five minutes of instructions to learn.
Unless your family enjoys that sort of thing.
In which case, Godspeed. 😂
December 21 — Notice the Winter Solstice
The shortest day.
Light a candle.
Go outside at dusk.
Take a walk.
Notice how early the darkness arrives.
Talk about the fact that from here, almost imperceptibly at first, the days begin to lengthen again.
Christmas exists inside a season.
Sometimes it’s lovely to notice both.
December 22 — Let Something Go
What doesn’t need to happen?
The perfect house?
Another shopping trip?
A complicated dessert?
One more event?
A tradition nobody particularly enjoys anymore?
Christmas is very close now.
You are allowed to stop preparing for it.
RELATED: 31 Ways to Slow Down and Savour December
December 23 — Gather in the Kitchen
This is often one of my favourite sorts of Christmas days.
Something cooking.
People wandering in and out.
Music playing.
Last bits being wrapped.
Somebody looking for food that has apparently been purchased specifically for Christmas and therefore cannot yet be eaten.
You don’t need to organise an activity.
Let the kitchen become the gathering place.
December 24 — Let Christmas Eve Begin
At some point, stop.
There will always be something else you could do.
Something else you could clean.
Something else you could prepare.
Put it down.
Make dinner.
Turn on the tree lights.
Light the safe candles.
Let everybody settle.
Christmas Eve has arrived.
You don’t need to spend it preparing for Christmas.
You’re already in it.
RELATED: 10 Christmas Eve Traditions – Simple, Meaningful Rituals for December 24th
And if Christmas Eve is one of the parts of the season you particularly love, you’ll find my free Christmas Eve Companion there too.
The Advent Companion
Our Free Christmas Advent Companion
The Advent Companion is designed to help you enjoy the weeks leading towards Christmas without turning them into a race.
Use it alongside the 24-day calendar, choose the pages that suit your family and leave the rest.
Keep it in your Christmas binder and bring it out again next year.
Explore the Free Advent Companion
This should be the largest printable block in the post, alongside the actual Advent calendar. They’re the two hero resources.
More Christmas Companions for Families
Explore all of our Christmas printables and ideas here (below are a selection of what you will find)
You Don’t Need to Do Something Every Day of Advent
I really want to emphasise this.
If you print the calendar on December 1st and then don’t look at it again until December 8th, nothing has gone wrong.
Don’t catch up.
Don’t squeeze eight activities into the weekend.
Look at December 8th.
Or choose whichever idea you fancy.
Or do none of them.
The quickest way to make slow, intentional Advent completely exhausting would be to become extremely committed to completing your slow, intentional Advent calendar.
We will not be doing that. 😂
Some December days are already full.
There are school events.
Appointments.
Christmas nights out.
Homework.
Work.
Sport.
Shopping.
Lifts.
Dinner.
Laundry.
Life.
Sometimes the most intentional thing we can do is recognise that a day has enough in it already.
Advent With Teenagers Won’t Look Like Advent With Little Children
And I don’t think it should.
This is something I’ve been thinking about more as our own children have grown.
There can be a temptation at Christmas to keep trying to reproduce an earlier version of family life because we loved it so much.
And of course we did.
There is something extraordinary about Christmas with small children.
The anticipation.
The excitement.
The absolute belief in all of it.
But we don’t honour those Christmases by trying to keep our children small inside them.
We get to discover the next version.
Teenagers bring their own energy to Christmas.
Their humour.
Their friends.
Their playlists.
Their terrible sleep schedules.
Their enormous appetites.
Their opinions.
Their independence.
They can bake.
They can choose gifts.
They can wrap.
They can cook.
They can introduce us to things.
They can stay up late talking.
And they can decide which pieces of their childhood Christmas they want to carry with them.
That’s lovely too.
Different.
But lovely.
Don’t Force the Festive Togetherness
An Advent activity is an invitation.
That’s all.
“I’m making gingerbread if you fancy helping.”
“We’re going to see the lights later.”
“I’m putting a Christmas film on at eight.”
“Will you choose some songs for the playlist?”
Then let them decide.
They may say no.
They may appear halfway through.
They may sit at the kitchen table while you’re making something and contribute absolutely nothing except eating half the ingredients.
Still counts.
We don’t create closeness by insisting everyone demonstrate enthusiasm for family time.
We create places where connection has a chance to happen.
Let Your Teenagers Change Christmas
This might be my favourite part of Christmas with older children.
We aren’t the sole creators of it anymore.
They bring things in.
A new film.
A song.
A food.
A joke.
An idea.
A way of doing something we’d never have chosen ourselves.
And sometimes those new things stick.
Five years later, nobody remembers that it started because one teenager insisted upon it.
It’s simply what the family does at Christmas.
That’s how traditions are made.
Not all at once.
Not because somebody carefully designed them.
They emerge from the life we’re living.
If What You Really Want Is a Slower December…
Advent is only one part of the month.
If you’re trying to create a little more breathing room throughout December, you might also enjoy the Slow Christmas Companion and my 31 Ways to Slow Down and Savour December calendar.
The Slow Christmas Companion isn’t about doing Christmas better.
It’s about thinking about what matters, what you can let go of and where you might make a little more room for the Christmas you’re actually living.
RELATED: 31 Ways to Slow Down and Savour December
Before You Go…
You don’t need to create twenty-four memorable Advent experiences.
Your teenagers don’t need that from you.
And neither do you.
Choose a few things that sound lovely.
Put some music on.
Make something warm to drink.
Bake when you fancy baking.
Go to see the lights.
Watch the film.
Leave some evenings empty.
Let them disappear upstairs.
Let them bring friends home.
Let them introduce you to their Christmas.
Keep the traditions that still feel like yours.
Allow some of the others to quietly disappear.
And leave enough space for the things you couldn’t possibly put on an Advent calendar.
The unexpected conversation in the kitchen.
Everyone laughing at something ridiculous.
A drive home in the dark.
The night everybody happens to be in.
A teenager sitting down beside you when you weren’t expecting them to.
Those moments don’t need planning.
We simply need enough room in December to notice when they happen.
Because Advent with older children isn’t about recreating the Christmases we had before.
It’s about being present for the Christmas we’re having now.
Chat soon,
Ciara x
Before You Go…
Looking for a little extra inspiration?
Browse our growing collection of free printables, including seasonal calendars, bucket lists, planners, journals and reflection pages designed to help you create a slower, more intentional life.
🖨️ Create Your Christmas Companion Binder
If you’re planning to print several of our Christmas companions, a few simple supplies can make it easy to create your own beautiful Christmas binder to enjoy year after year.
(This section contains affiliate links. If you choose to purchase through them, I may earn a small commission at no extra cost to you. Thank you for supporting Our Little House in the Country.)
- 📗 A4 Display Book
- 📁 A4 Ring Binder
- 📄 Plastic Document Wallets
- 📎 Adjustable Hole Punch
- 🖊️ Fine-liner Pens
- 📑 Divider Tabs
Explore the Christmas Collection Further
If you’ve enjoyed this printable, I’d love to invite you to explore the rest of our growing Christmas Companion Library. Each beautifully illustrated collection has been thoughtfully designed to help you create a calmer, more organised and more meaningful festive season. Whether you’re planning Christmas, preparing festive meals, embracing Advent, slowing down to savour the season or making magical family memories, there’s a companion waiting for you.
Explore the collection: Christmas Printables Hub, Free Christmas Planner Companion, Christmas Kitchen Companion, Christmas Eve Companion, Christmas Bucket List Companion, Slow Christmas Companion and Advent Companion
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- Getting the Kitchen Ready for Christmas: A Practical Guide to a Calm Christmas KitchenA practical guide to getting your kitchen ready for Christmas, from checking supplies and making space to planning food, baking, Christmas dinner and leftovers.
- How to Plan Christmas Without the Stress: A Simple Christmas Planning GuideChristmas planning does not have to mean turning December into one enormous to-do list. A thoughtful plan can help you organise the practical things early, reduce the mental load and leave more room for the people, traditions and ordinary moments you actually want to enjoy.
- Christmas Hospitality: How to Create a Warm and Welcoming Home for Your GuestsChristmas hospitality isn’t about creating a perfect home or spending the season waiting on everyone else. From easy breakfasts and relaxed meals to thoughtful little details that help guests truly feel at home, here’s how to create a warm, welcoming Christmas for the people coming through your door — without overwhelming yourself in the process.
- 10 Gentle New Year’s Eve Rituals: Simple Ways to Ring in the Year at HomeSkip the noise and welcome the new year with quiet joy. These 10 gentle New Year’s Eve rituals invite you to pause, reflect, and celebrate at home — simple, soulful ways to mark the turning of the year with gratitude and grace.
Our Little House in the Country
Hi, I’m Ciara — writer, homemaker, and the heart behind Our Little House in the Country. I share slow, seasonal living from our cozy corner of the Irish countryside, where life is a little messy, a little magical, and deeply real. Whether it’s a teen-friendly recipe, a lived-in home moment, or a reminder to let go of perfection, this space is about embracing the everyday and finding joy in what’s already here. Come in, kick off your shoes, and stay a while — the kettle’s always on.
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