• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Patchwork Cactus

DIY, Design, Messy Hair, Food, Kids, Style, Parenting and Leopard Print

  • DIY
  • Life
  • Style
  • Food
  • Kids
  • About
  • Professional Organisation Service
  • Nav Social Menu

    • Bloglovin
    • Email
    • Facebook
    • Instagram
    • Pinterest
    • Twitter

The Random Acts of Kindness Advent Calendar (It’s chocolate free but still good)

November 25, 2015

I love advent calendars but something has never sat well with me about giving them treats every day leading up to Christmas.

I mean, yeah kids, come to all these parties and smash candy canes all day every day then eat the yummy stuff mummy is baking for everyone, now make sure to grab your chocolate from the calendar when we get home. Why are you guys acting so mental today? Behave, stop bouncing off the walls, DON’T MAKE ME CALL SANTA!

So I was doing some research about alternatives to chocolate advent calendars and I found a whole bunch of ‘random acts of kindness’ ones. (Or Random acts of Christmas as I like to think of them.)

Awesome – the kids can learn how doing things and giving things to other people is soooooooooo much freaking better than getting stuff and also that not everything is about them.

Settled.

Buuut, I wanted to make it special to us, so I wrote our own list of 24 random acts of kindness to do this December.

We already have a tradition of letting the kids open their gift from us on Christmas Eve (it’s always new PJ’s and a Christmas book) so now they will have 24 days of ‘giving’ (and watching me give) leading up to the moment where they get to ‘get’.

Obviously some of this stuff on the list won’t get done, that’s life but we are aiming to do it all – on whatever day it suits, it doesn’t need to be in order. So if you want to play along please do! But mix it up, make sure it suits you.

24 Random Acts of Christmas Ideas

1. Compliment someone on how well they are rocking parenting, their job or their outfit.

2. Write a nice comment on a blog your enjoy.

3. Buy someone a coffee.

4. Give someone a list of things you love about them.

5. Donate new PJ’s, razors or fancy shampoo and conditioner to a women’s refuge.

6. Leave some love notes around to remind people they are wonderful.

7. Write a letter or email to someone telling them how awesome they are.

8. Buy a box of mangos for your kids’ teachers.

9. Put money in a collections box.

10. Smile at everyone you walk past.

11. Bring a huge box of ice blocks to the park.

12. Offer to help someone with something.

13. Pick up rubbish in a public place.

14. Tape some coins to a vending machine.

15. Leave a gift for the postie in the letterbox.

16. Call a local charity, like the ones that house families of sick kids near the hospital, and ask them what they are in need of, then put a call out on Facebook.

17. Deliver a bunch of flowers (hand-picked or not) to the fireys to say thanks.

18. Generously tip someone.

19. Buy Christmas presents that donate to charities.

20. Leave some pencils and a colouring-in book with a note attached somewhere a bored child will find it. Like a waiting room or the RTA.

21. Bring someone who is working in the sun a cold drink.

22. Buy you dog, or your neighbour’s dog a bone from the butcher.

23. Offer up your services; if you’re good at taking pictures, offer to take some portraits for a friend. Are you a hairdresser? Give away a free chop.

24. Help someone unco to wrap their presents. (I’m looking at you mum)

Tweet
Pin
Share
Share

Filed Under: Christmas, Life

9 Happiness Hacks For People With Little People

Road Tripping With Ford #comeoutandplay

Don’t Forget To Evict Your Children This Week

Around Here – Homebodies

Around Here – On Country Time

working from home, you’re doing it wrong

Around Here – Coastside

10 ways to find more time in your day – for people with little people

Previous Post: « A hand painted book box tutorial
Next Post: Beach Lady Christmas Gift Guide »

Reader Interactions

Comments

  1. Lozzie@MessyRainbows

    November 25, 2015 at 6:52 pm

    All such fab ideas. I’ll try to implement a few ofthem along with our chocolate, lolly & beer advents 😉

  2. Shannon @ Oh Creative Day

    November 25, 2015 at 8:59 pm

    #24 makes me feel sad for these poor souls. What a terrible plight that must be 😉

  3. Sammie @ The Annoyed Thyroid

    November 26, 2015 at 8:09 am

    Love this idea! We’re 43 and 44 respectively but still have an advent calendar. I’m going to be adding some RAK’s in with the chocolate this year!

  4. Vicki ShoppeGirls

    November 28, 2015 at 7:28 am

    Love this idea. V x

  5. Trish

    November 28, 2015 at 7:05 pm

    A fabulous list and I’m going to try it.

  6. Alix

    November 29, 2015 at 4:20 pm

    What a fabulous idea. Not many kids around our parts but I love the idea of doing this calendar for my husband and me. A reminder of how fortunate we are, even when things are seeming a little tough.

  7. Trish

    November 30, 2015 at 9:46 am

    Can you make this a printable so we can share widely ?

  8. Deirdre O'Reilly

    November 30, 2015 at 3:00 pm

    I just know you were thinking of your mother when you wrote 24!

  9. Patchwork Cactus

    December 1, 2015 at 9:51 am

    Yah, we will be enjoying plenty of lollies, chocolate and beer too!

  10. Patchwork Cactus

    December 1, 2015 at 9:51 am

    Yay! Well let me start by saying what an amazing mum you are!

  11. Patchwork Cactus

    December 1, 2015 at 9:52 am

    Haha, yep. Feeling truely sorry for my mum right now.

  12. Patchwork Cactus

    December 1, 2015 at 9:52 am

    Thanks so much, I love that you love it! Will you be joining in?

  13. Patchwork Cactus

    December 1, 2015 at 9:52 am

    Oh yay! Spread the love baby!

  14. Patchwork Cactus

    December 1, 2015 at 9:53 am

    Some of the stuff I thing, I should just do that for my husbro, I could be kinder to him for sure!

  15. Patchwork Cactus

    December 1, 2015 at 9:54 am

    I would love to but the writing would have to be so small that you could barely read it. I was hoping people would just pin the image.

  16. Patchwork Cactus

    December 1, 2015 at 9:54 am

    Do not take that as an invitation to do NO wrapping until I arrive.

  17. maddy

    December 1, 2015 at 3:42 pm

    love this list almost as much as we love you ! xxx

  18. Mand

    December 4, 2015 at 10:05 am

    I just signed up with you. I like your style. I particularly like your “speak”. Pals gave me a book for my fortieth -they had made it-had it bound and all-a chapter is dedicated to “Mand speak”-so I’m thinking I’ll be comin by your blog more often. Thanks.

Primary Sidebar

HELLO


Welcome to Patchwork Cactus Blog.
Life, style + a whole lot of good stuff.

Can I tempt you?

  • Advertise with me
  • Brand Storytelling
  • Family Photography
  • Freelance Content Creation and Consultancy

Want some Patchwork Cactus in your inbox?

Popular posts

Five items that will take your kids’ Summer wardrobe into the colder months

Two Ingredient Play Dough Recipe – a great alternative to DIY slime

It’s ok to tell your kids no, especially when it comes to pool time

Parenting mantras to help you create a calmer family culture - Waiting is the perfect time to breathe

Parenting mantras to help you create a calmer family culture

Three Alternatives to Hot Chocolate

Milo Balls Recipe - Cooking With Kids

Milo Bliss Balls Recipe

Instagram

Follow Me!

Footer

Instagram

Instagram has returned invalid data.

Copyright © 2023 · Patchwork Cactus