Advent is almost here and I have seen a lot of great ideas of how to prepare for this season of expectancy. I decided to repost this post that I initially shared the past couple of years.. It has been a really great practice for me and you know that food pantries always need donations especially during this time of the year. So please, enjoy, participate and share. Tis the season for sharing. 

One thing that I have seen that has gained a lot of popularity is the Reverse Advent Calendar.  When we were growing up we always had Advent Calendars.  I am sure many of my readers had the same things or shared the tradition with their own children.

Each day we counted down the days until Christmas by either moving a little star on a calendar or opening up a little pocket or box to reveal a tiny gift. One year I had a 24 days of Tea Calendar that I used from David’s Tea. It was a fun way to count down the days until Christmas and it celebrated my love of all things tea. There are also wine calendars, chocolate calendars and more that can be purchased each year.

The idea with the Reverse Advent Calendar is the opposite of what we normally do.  Instead of taking something out the idea is to put something aside for Advent to give to someone else. The calendar I have created allows the giver to fill a basket to be given to a local food pantry after it is filled.

I have worked with quite a few food pantries over the years and donated a lot of different items.  What they don’t need are exotic foods or items that are expired.  What they do need are sensible high protein items that will help their clients get some quality food into their diets.  The items on this list are guaranteed to be great options for donations.

This year we can all do a little bit more giving to others who have less than we have.  I know I continue to realize each and every day just how much abundance I have.  I do live an extraordinary life and I want to share just a fraction of that with others.

Please feel free to share this idea with your friends and family.  If you click on the link below it should allow you to print out this checklist as a PDF file that you can post on your refrigerator or share with friends.

ReverseAdventCalendar.jpg

Do you have any other ideas of ways to give back during the holidays?  I would love to hear all about them in the comments section.