Busted Halo’s 2010 Advent Surprise Calendar

[This is the 2010 calendar; check back soon for our new 2011 Advent calendar. — The editors]

Sunday Monday Tuesday Wednesday Thursday Friday Saturday
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Advent is a precious time in the Christian calendar. The four weeks leading up to December 25 are meant to be a period of expectant waiting, as we prepare ourselves for the miraculous arrival of our Savior, in the form of a vulnerable infant born to humble parents.

The reality for most of us, though, is that these are anxious weeks of shopping and holiday planning leading up to a hectic Christmas Day. In the bustle of the holiday season, it’s hard to remember what we’re waiting for.

Completely avoiding the Christmas onslaught may be impossible, but we can make an effort to maintain some connection to the spiritual foundation of this season. Busted Halo’s 2010 Advent Surprise Calendar is here to help a little with that.

In traditional Advent calendars, children open different windows throughout the season to reveal special surprises. Busted Halo’s Advent calendar brings its sense of surprise by showing you the whole calendar, but not letting you open each day and find out what’s behind the picture until that day comes along.

How the digital Advent calendar works

Each day, that day’s link in the Advent calendar will start working, leading to a special Advent-themed Daily Jolt, with an opportunity for reflection, a microChallenge and a chance to win a prize. Some of the reflections come from unlikely sources, and the challenges help you to take an action, usually a small one, based on the reflection.

ipod-nano-mt

There are three levels of prizes: daily, weekly, and a grand prize — the new iPod Nano with Multitouch display. Every day, a new clue describing the weekly prize is revealed. Readers can send in one guess each day. Each guess will enter them into the random drawing for that day’s prize and into the grand prize drawing. Plus, each correct guess will enter them into that week’s random drawing for the weekly prize. (If none of the entries in a given week have guessed the weekly prize correctly, the winner will be chosen from a random drawing of all that week’s entries.)

Entries must be accompanied by both email and snail mail addresses. (Don’t worry, this info won’t be given out to anyone; it just makes it easier to track contestants and winners.) The iPod Nano Grand Prize will be awarded after December 25 in a random drawing from all eligible entries received during Advent. See a list of the winners so far here, and the contest rules here.

All you need to do to enter each day is come back to our calendar, open that day’s new link and submit a valid entry. You can enter up to once a day (and if you enter every day you increase your chances of winning the grand prize too.)

 

As you await the coming of our Lord on Christmas Day, use the Busted Halo Advent calendar to remind yourself of what this season is really about.