Unwrapping the Christmas Story

Angie reading to the boys 3 years ago.

You guys know I'm obsessed with the 25-Wrapped-Christmas-Books tradition that I mentioned in my last post. Taking turns reading pages in books that remind us that God loves us so much that He took on human flesh, is a powerful way to spend chilly winter evenings. Some people have asked for recommendations on where to start. So, here's a quick How-To.

First, skim through all your children's books and pull out anything that looks Christmasy. Count those up and look to your local library for the remainder of the 25 books you'll need. It's also fun to add a new book or two to your collection each season though a bookstore or gift from a friend or family member. We're up to over 20 Christmas books in our house now, but we probably only had a dozen or so when we started.

Pro Tip: If you think you might want to do this again in future years, find a separate place on the bookshelf to keep all your Christmas books during the year. It will make finding them again super simple next November when you want to wrap them up, AND it will take them out of the normal reading rotation so they'll be special each December. 

Then you just wrap them, number them, and stack them. I number them so that I can mix up the kinds of books: short vs. long, funny vs. serious, and I save some of my favorites for Christmas and Christmas Eve. Pro Tip #2: if you check some out from the library, put them in the first couple weeks, so you can return them before they're due.

Here are 10 suggestions of titles to look for wherever you buy or checkout books to start off your collection:

A precious and comical depiction of bedtime that any mother can relate to, well, except maybe the manger part... 

Beautiful illustrations and the straightforward birth of Jesus story from Luke 2. 

I always save this one for our very last book. I really don't know why I love it so much, maybe the veterinarian in me can't resist all the animals, but this is a Little Golden Book classic and it's my favorite every year!

We got this one used, and the noise button was broken, a Christmas miracle!

You really can't go wrong with any Usborne book.

It's short, it rhymes, and it reminds us of the important lesson that not all gifts are found under the tree.

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This one is hilarious and brilliantly touching. Highly recommend! 

We think of these legends pretty much every time we enjoy candy canes now. 

A sweet simple story about a polar bear family and the Northern Lights.

A brand new one by an author we cannot get enough of, Matthew Paul Turner. So excited for his profound poetry set to Gillian Gamble's gorgeous artwork!

I'd love to hear your favorites too. We're always looking to grow our stash of great accounts of the birth of Jesus!

"You will find a baby wrapped in cloths and lying in a manger.” -Luke 2:12