One of my favorite things to do in December is counting how many days are left until Christmas. This year, my mom helped my kids by giving them an Angry Birds Christmas advent calendar. It was a BIG surprise and a BIG hit. Even our elf on the shelf Wink had fun with the new toys a couple of days ago.
Our elf on the shelf playing with angry birds
This year I decided to use our wall white board as a countdown to Christmas (remember how I used it for Thanksgiving?). With a little help from Google images, it only took a few minutes to create a new countdown every few days. My first countdown helper was Rudolph the red nose reindeer. That’s when I realized how hard it was not only to draw with thick dry erase markers, but also how to color with them.
Countdown to Christmas board with Rudolph the red nosed reindeer
A few days later, we brought our Elf Wink home. He felt eager to help out with the countdown to Christmas so he drew himself during the night. The boys loved his self-portrait.
Countdown to Christmas board with the elf on the shelf
Nothing says cold winter days like a penguin, and penguins are very cute so this little black and white guy was my next pick.
Penguin counts down to Christmas
I then opted for a snowman. That should be Christmassy enough, right?
Countdown to Christmas with a snowman
Well, my youngest didn’t like it so much (it’s boring, Mama!) so the next day he asked me to draw a “cute baby polar bear” instead. Thank Google images for the great ideas…
Christmas countdown: cute baby polar bear drawing
Of course you can’t have a countdown to Christmas without Buddy the Elf. Unfortunately dry erase markers don’t come in human flesh color, so Buddy looks like he needs a little sun. Not much of that in the North Pole in the winter anyway.
Countdown to Christmas with Buddy the elf
Today, we’re only one day away from Christmas so Santa is making his first apparition, at least a partial one.
One day until Christmas: Santa coming down the chimney
I can’t wait to draw Santa wishing us a merry Christmas tonight after the kids go to bed. We have so many small and big presents under the tree, I told my kids they could open a couple of them tonight, so that should be fun. And Christmas morning will be fun of magic once Santa delivers the last presents under the tree.
Merry Christmas to you and your loved ones! Christmas really is the most wonderful time of the year.
Perfecting Motherhood 
I love your countdown pics! You could create your own count-down calendar for others to enjoy. Just one more project for you to work on. ;)
Have a great Christmas!
Haha, you know how to get me going! Wouldn’t it be fun to tear one page every day with a new picture? Now I’m going to have to look into that. :-)
Yes, that would be really fun!
I just looked around and found nothing like it out there, so you may be on to something. :-)
Christmas is about bringing magic and priceless joy to our family. Looks like your home has tons of love and happiness not just during Christmas but everyday. Wishing you and your family the best of Christmas and a great new year.
They sure did built up the anticipation of Christmas every day of December and the boys were so excited to open their presents this morning. Christmas is by far our most favorite holiday.
What a delightful idea, Milka! I enjoyed seeing your artwork. You are such a terrific mom to those boys.
Thank you, Nancy. I’ve put this white board to good use this year by drawing something new and funny on it every few days. The Xmas countdown was a big hit. I hope you had a good Christmas.
Your kids must have been super excited with a countdown like that going on! Buddy the Elf always makes me laugh. I love Wink’s self portrait too. I’m sure your kids will have lots of magical Christmas memories. Hope you have a happy new year with more great moments to add to the jar!
Can you guess all of us were excited about Christmas coming up? It’s too bad it lasts only one day. Funny you mention our jar. I just published a post about it this morning. And yes, it did have a few pieces of paper about Christmas in there.
So awesome! We didn’t do Elf on the Shelf, but my kids’ princess dolls came to life while they were sleeping every night from Thanksgiving to Christmas Eve. They got into all sorts of trouble. The kids LOVED it! Thanks for sharing! Love your page!
That’s a great idea! I’ve always wanted to set up some fun scenes with my youngest one’s dinosaurs overnight. I just have to remember to do it. I think the kids would have a blast. Thanks for stopping by and taking the time to comment!