droolicious : advent calendars

Advent for Penguin Lovers

Erin Behan — Mon, 01 Dec 2008 13:46:00 GMT

I posted before about a more traditional advent calendar I liked, but here's one that's a little less traditional and a little more fun. The pop-up Penguin Advent Calendar ($16.99) by Joelle Jolivet will have you and your family counting the penguins behind each of the 24 die-cut widows. A miniature book comes with the calendar and gives door-by-door explanations in rhyme.

Modern Advent Calendar: Does it Exist?

Erin Behan — Wed, 26 Nov 2008 17:09:00 GMT

If you're not as crafty as flickr's modern cottage, you may have a hard time finding a modern-looking advent calendar (I did). The best selection of the best looking advent calendars that I could find, which coincidentally were also the best priced, all came from Target. My favorite for its minimal look and clean graphics is the above cream-colored advent calendar (on sale for $25). It's handpainted in a distressed white finish and the doors have a stay-closed locking system. See all of Target's advent calendars.

LEGO City Advent Calendar Holds 24 Days' Worth of Bricks

Aaron Burgess — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 16:04:00 GMT

With 41 days left till Christmas, you've still got ample time to nab a 2008 LEGO City Advent Calendar. The box itself functions as the calendar, with each of the 24 windows concealing a LEGO City minifigure or accessory, and the last day of Advent revealing the biggest surprise in the set.

$29.99 from the LEGO Shop, and if you order $70 in additional goodies during your visit, shipping is free. (Shipping promotion expires Dec. 1)

Olive, the Other Reindeer Revisited in Pop-Up and Calendar Form

Aaron Burgess — Wed, 14 Nov 2007 20:02:00 GMT

From a purist's perspective, there's really no improving on Vivian Walsh's 1997 book Olive, the Other Reindeer: Cute: Jack Russell Terrier named Olive mishears a Christmas carol, heads to the North Pole to find her calling as the "the other reindeer," confuses Santa's crew in the process, and eventually proves herself a valuable asset to both the team and holiday lore. (The movie is another story.)

Olive, the Other Reindeer: Deluxe Edition ($19.95) brings to life Walsh's story via pop-up versions of J.otto Siebold's wonderful artwork. For the most part, the pop-ups aren't mind-blowers: The simple lift-the-flaps and pull-out tabs don't really add to or take away from the story; they're just sort of... there. The scratch-and-sniff pages (mmm, gingerbread...) and book-closing Santa's-castle pop-up, on the other hand, are truly awesome, and kids will find them worth the price of admission alone.

If you're looking for a way to keep the magic going, Seibold's Olive the Other Reindeer Pop-Up Advent Calendar ($9.95, above) expands on the book's grand finale in just the right ways, with a deluxe pop-up version of Santa's castle and 24 punch-out figures that children can place around it.

Count Down to the Holidays with LEGO Advent Calendars

Aaron Burgess — Tue, 13 Nov 2007 19:03:00 GMT

Okay, so technically you're supposed to use an Advent calendar to count down the days till Christmas, but with 24 miniature LEGO surprises waiting behind each of their doors, these holiday-countdown sets could pique LEGO fans' interest regardless of belief system. Aimed at ages 5-12, the LEGO City Advent Calendar ($24.99, above) offers a new city-themed goodie for each day of the season, including LEGO City minifigures, equipment, a fireplace and a tree.

The Bellville Advent Calendar ($19.99, above) offers 24 similar treats aimed at girls ages 5-10, including fairies, animals and accessories from LEGO's Bellville world. Bundle them in LEGO's Santa gift wrap ($2.99) to complete the package.