Most parents of young children have heard all about the Elf on a Shelf, a small toy that "watches over your kids" and reports back to Santa to let him know if they deserve to be on the nice or naughty list. While it is always fun seeing some of the creative ways the elves are caught hiding each morning, it does fall short of reminding our families of the importance of preparing our hearts for the birthday of our Savior, Jesus Christ. Can there be a similar fun tradition that encourages creativity (although is not nearly as time-consuming) while keeping your family focused on the "Reason for the Season"?
That's where "The Star From Afar" comes in! It's a cute wooden manger complete with all the key figurines and a book to guide your family through the whole month of December leading up to Jesus' birth. Simply hide the star each morning and once the kids are awake have them look for the Star of Bethlehem. Once they find it, have the children bring the Wise Men with them and have them place the three figurines under/beside the star.
We recommend continuing to hide the star until the Feast of the Epiphany (with some King Cake, of course!) to help reinforce that Christmas is more than a one-day celebration.
You can always make a Star of Bethlehem as a family out of paper, popsicle sticks, glitter, etc. and use your own nativity scene figures if you'd like!