In about 2 weeks, Advent will begin. Advent is a season of waiting. It is a time of preparing for Baby Jesus to be born again and again.

This is a very special Advent for me. It is the first Advent since my debut picture book The

Donkey’s Song was published [on October 18, 2022],

and I am celebrating this Advent season by sharing all kinds of crafts and stories to help families–especially the children–prepare for Christmas.

I like to create ornaments for a Jesse Tree during Advent.

What Is a Jesse Tree & Why Is a Jesse Tree an Important Part of Christmas?

During the season of Advent, I like to remember all the stories that led up to the birth of Jesus. That is a constructive way for me to wait. I also like to create an ornament that is somehow linked to the stories for each day. I like to begin my celebration of Advent at the very beginning, with this story.

In the very beginning, the world was a watery darkness, but God changed that by creating dry land and by separating that dry land from the water. Here is how I’ll create my ornament for that story:

Genesis 1

1:1 In the beginning God created the heaven and the earth.

1:2 And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness was upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters.“

1:3 “And God said, Let there be light: and there was light.”

1: 4 “And God saw the light, that it was good: and God divided the light from the darkness.” Genesis

1: 5 “And God called the light Day, and the darkness he called Night. And the evening and the morning were the first day.”

1:6 “And God said, Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters, and let it divide the waters from the waters.

1:7 “And God made the firmament, and divided the waters which were under the firmament from the waters which were above the firmament: and it was so.

1:8 “And God called the firmament Heaven. And the evening and the morning were the second day.”

“The King James Version of the Bible: Genesis.” Gutenberg.org, www.gutenberg.org/cache/epub/10/pg10-images.html. Accessed 25 Oct. 2022.