12 Days Blog Hop: Jesse Tree Advent with the Jesus Storybook Bible
This giveaway is over! Congratulations to Barbara! I’ll send you your Bible right away!
Welcome to the 12 Days of Crafty Christmas Blog Hop! I have teamed up with 5 other fabulous designers, and we are excited to be bringing you some crafty inspiration to help you celebrate this Christmas season. Look forward to some wonderful project ideas, tutorials, freebies and giveaways brought to you by Mari Koegelenberg, Pamela of Keeping Life Creative, Laura of Wishing Well Creations, Melissa of Domesticated Lady, Jen of Girl Boy Girl Designs and myself, Kelleigh Ratzlaff.
I’m excited to get the ball rolling today and show you what I have been working on!
Read all the way to the bottom, because I have a giveaway!!
Several years ago, I heard about the Jesse Tree Project, which is an advent retelling of God’s plan to rescue His children. It comes from Isaiah 11:1 - “A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse: from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.” This verse refers to Jesse, the father of King David, who was in the lineage of Jesus Christ.
It’s important to our family to keep Christ in Christmas and pass on a strong tradition of celebrating what the birth of Jesus Christ means for our salvation.
Jesus didn’t stay in the manger. He lived a life that we should try to live, he died a death we should have died, and he rose again so that we can live forever with him!!
Last year, I discovered the world’s greatest children’s Bible: The Jesus Storybook Bible
. I had heard many, many reviews from trusted friends and pastors recommending this Bible, so I purchased one for our family. Now, I must say that we have several kid’s Bibles. Like, maybe 6? A lot. What I love about this Bible is that the subtitle is so true: Every story whispers his name. And, it’s true! Every story written in the Jesus Storybook Bible concludes with a paragraph that points to Jesus. All throughout the Old Testament and the New Testament, everything points to Jesus. It is such a great survey of God’s Plan, and a wonderful reminder to adults and children alike. I get choked up every time I read from the Jesus Storybook Bible! Plus, the stories are short enough that we read one story each morning while waiting for the bus to come. If you have 5 minutes, you have enough time to have a meaningful family devotion time. Not kidding.
I loved the idea of a Jesse Tree, however I wanted it to be very accesible to my children, plus I was a little intimidated by the whole project. I needed simple, understandable and cute!! But, I knew that this was the year I was going to do the Jesse Tree!
At the same time all of this was running through my head, I discovered that someone had put together an Advent Reading list using stories from the Jesus Storybook Bible! I was giddy! A match made in heaven!
I asked my sweet friend, Pamela of Keeping Life Creative to create some printable ornaments using her felty talents, and she agreed! I was so excited with what she came up with. Check out her blog post to see how she put her ornaments together. It’s a lot easier than what I did, so those of you who are intimidated, please don’t be! You can do this! Pamela’s printable set is geared toward the actual Jesse Tree tradition and contains Bible story passage references from that tradition.
However, I bugged her again, and she agreed to create a FREE little add-on set just for those of us who are doing the Jesus Storybook Bible Advent!! YAY PAM! You are so wonderful, my friend. Thank you very much!!
I love how my ornaments turned out!
This is what I did. Some of it is technical, but for those of you who are familiar with Photoshop, it will be no biggie. I’ll include some “basic version” directions, too.
First, I had to pull Pam’s PDFs into Photoshop. I simply went to File>Open and selected the PDF file. I left everything on the pop up screen as-is, and imported all of her files. They opened on the screen as if they were jpg images.
Next, I selected (Rectangular or Eliptical Marquee tool) each image and cut it (ctrl X), then switched to Silhouette Studio and pasted it onto a blank screen (ctrl V). It comes in ginormous, so I clicked and dragged the corners to resize it to inky-dinky.
Next, I set up my Silhouette screen like this (and hopefully you will figure it out by just looking):
And I used the print and cut feature. Love that feature!!
Basic Version: Open the PDF document and go to your print dialog box (so, click the printer image). Then, on the next screen under “Pages to Print” type in 7-10 (the pages without the dashed lines) and under Size Options, click “Shrink Oversized Pages”. Now, look toward the bottom and click the Page Setup box. Scale the image down by a %. Your setting will vary, so I’m not even going to guess what you would put in there, but you could start with 40%, print it out and see what you get. Your ornaments could be larger than mine or smaller! The idea here is to shrink the page down so that when you punch the image out with your paper puncher, it will fit nicely in the punchout area.
I added ribbon to the back of the little wooden disks I found at Michael’s.
And then glued the pictures to the front. I plan to mod podge them one day, but today is not that day. Mama’s tired.
I knew I would forget which picture went with which story, so I made little punch-out (or cut out) labels for the backs, too! I created mine in Silhouette Studio, but I re-created it here for you! Click on the image below to download my basic sheet in a fully editable psd file (for Photoshop users) and two PDF files: one with circles and one without circles.
I am so excited about the way this project turned out. It’s simple, easy to use, and it will definitely help us to focus on the reason behind the season. My kids can’t wait to start pulling them out of the box one by one, read the story and hang them on a miniature Christmas tree!
THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW OVER!
And now, for the giveaway!! I recently found the The Jesus Storybook Bible
To enter, simply leave a comment on this blog post. Do you have an advent tradition? I’d love to hear about it!
THIS GIVEAWAY IS NOW OVER!
Merry Christmas, everyone!
Don’t forget to keep coming back and hop along with us as we continue the 12 Days of Crafty Christmas!!
Disclosure: This post may contain affiliate links. When you use them, you help support this site! Thank you!
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I don’t have an advent tradition but would really like to start one…your ornaments are amazing and would b a great start.
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I would LOVE to have the Bible!!
My son is 2 1/2 this year. And we have decided NOT to go the Santa route. We are focusing on Jesus, the way it really should be. I have a daily meditation book that I am reading with him, but it’s geared for adults.
We don’t have any advent traditions yet. Though, I do want to have traditions. I was not raised knowing Jesus, so I have no traditions in that regard. We have a clean slate to work with!
Thank you so much for your gracious giveaway! And I wish you a very Merry Christmas!
God Bless!
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Love your ornaments! I was thinking of adding the scriptures to the back like you did, and now you’ve made it easier for me lol Thanks for sharing and the chance for the Bible!
P.S. Oh, I just noticed Day 11 is missing. Just thought you would want to know
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Kelleigh Reply:
December 2nd, 2012 at 8:46 am
Thank you so much, Melanie!! I can’t believe I missed that. I fixed it, though!! Whew!
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Melanie Reply:
December 2nd, 2012 at 6:56 pm
Thanks so much Kelleigh! I do that kind of stuff all the time
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Kelleigh, your ornaments turned out super cute!! I absolutely LOVE all of Pam’s feltie creations!
The Jesse Tree Advent is new to me, but after being introduced to it through Pam, I love it already. I would be so thrilled to win The Jesus Storybook Bible to be able to share with all of my little ones. I am a preschool teacher at a small Christian school here in town and would use it there as well as at home. Thank you for the chance to win it!
Merry Christmas!
~Krista J.
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Thank you for offering this giveaway……….I would love to read it with my chidren. I have had an advent calendar I made of felt 35 years ago when my girls were little. Each day just holds one Hershey kiss and they took turns with the days, but it became, and is, such a tradition!
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I would love one of these for my Grandaughter. She would love it! I am going to print off the Jessie Tree instructions and mail them to her!! Thanks!
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Thank you so much for hosting this giveaway! How sweet
I only just heard about the Jesse Tree recently and hope to incorporate it into our family Christmas traditions 
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I’ve been on the hunt for a great children’s storybook bible! Very intrigued
!!
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We will be using the Jesus Storybook Bible for advent this year thanks to you. We have read ours until it has almost fallen apart. If we win we will replace ours or give it to a neighbor that doesn’t have the JSB. I will let the kids decide.
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we have 3 baby bibles, but im looking for something more ‘advanced’ since my eldest is 3. we’d be so happy to have this! thanks.
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I can’t believe this! I teach Religious Education and just did a lesson on Advent and the Jesse Tree last Monday. It was the first time I heard of the tradition and encouraged my class to get creative and create their own Jesse Trees at home to start a new advent tradition in their family. My daughters and I love this stuff so we were planning to make the ornaments up as we went a long…I can’t believe this gift has just been special delivered to me! I’m so excited to share this with them when they get home from school today and plan to share this with the parents of my students tonight so they can take advantage of your adorable templates. Thank you so much for sharing!!!!! I will definitely look into the book as well…we had planned to follow a guide on the web but the book would be phenomenal.
As for advent traditions, our tried and true is the Advent Wreath and of course the Advent Calendar. We use the same ones each year but switch the order the family members open the windows of the calendar or light the candles and say the prayer…this year it’s youngest to oldest! Thank you again.
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I have too MANY Advent traditions, and then we end up not doing them after a few days! They include putting “straw” (fluffy tan yarn) in a manger for baby Jesus whenever you do a kind deed, countdown chains, Advent calendars, reading a Christmas book a day, and our Advent wreath.
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I just started a tradition…an advent paper chain with a twist. On the back of each chain piece is an activity to do, including ideas for helping others, random acts of kindness, and family activities. Not only do my kids get to count down to Christmas, but we get to do fun things together too.
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Our family traditions include attending our church’s Christmas Eve service, driving to check out Christmas lights and reading the Christmas story. I really want to do a Jesse tree, but like you have been intimidated by the amount of work needed to create the materials. The link you posted may just get me there!
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We do not have an advent tradition, but I’d love to start one for my two-and-a-half-year-old great-grandson. Would love to have the Jesus Storybook Bible to share with him.
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This Bible looks amazing! We have a Jesse tree book and ornaments that someone made for us a couple of years ago that the kids really love.
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hey Kel~ I would love to win the bible for Colby! He would love it!
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I have been looking for an Advent idea. I want to begin a tradition on this first Christmas with my 3 month old granddaughter, Allyana. I know this will be a beautiful family tradition.
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Your creativity impresses me, but your desire to impact your children with the TRUE meaning of Christmas is even more inspiring! Thanks for putting so much effort into making this, and for generously sharing it with the rest of us…allowing it to impact our children and students! Thanks for the Bible recommendation, and for the chance to win a copy of this great Book.
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[...] just wanted to show you some super cute ornaments Kelleigh made with the printables, wood disks, and modge podge. They’re definitely more durable than [...]
[...] shared my Jesse Tree ornaments (which my boys LOVE) and showed you the Jesus Storybook Bible that I will be giving away! Go [...]
[...] December 1: The Jesse Tree (Explanation | Simple Ornaments | Wood Ornaments) [...]
Entering.
We do an Advent wreath, but I’ve been meaning to make a Jesse tree for years. Maybe I’ll print everything this year so that it will be ready for next Advent!
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We’ve started doing the Playmobil advent calendars each year. The girls are just old enough to start really “getting” the traditions.
Thanks for the giveaway! I haven’t seen this Bible and have been waiting to find just the right one- maybe this is it! Merry Christmas!
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My husband’s aunt sent Advent activities to us each year for years for us to do with our kids. What a generous gift each year. Now i try to do the same for my niece and nephew which is what i would do if i won the Bible. I would regift it ( : Thanks so much. Merry Christmas!
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Meygn could use a little Bible:)
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I’ve been looking for a good children’s bible… This may be it
hope I get to read it to my sweet baby boy 
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We enjoy our Advent wreath and lighting the candles each week. The kiddos did a Jesse tree at school this year. It’s been fun!
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We have a nativity advent calender but I love the idea of incorporating reading the Bible in with it.
Super cute idea!
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I would love to win this. I never knew the story. Thanks for the chance
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This is beautiful! My grandmother made me a Jesse Tree when I was young, would love for my daughter to have one too! Great project to do together.
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Sooo. Stinkin cute if an idea. Foe the little people of our lives to get to be involved!!! Doing this for the little men of my home as a Christmas craft! We home school so this will tie right in with our learnimgs!!! Thank you so much for making this easier for us to download!!! Many blessings to you and yours!!!
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That looks awesome. We have a felt advent nativity scene which my 5 yo has done for the last 2 years. This year we are going to incorporate a nativity puzzle with magnetic tape on the back, a piece a day, put together on the fridge.
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I would love to win this for my Sunday school classroom
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Shay Reply:
November 21st, 2013 at 3:06 pm
I love your creativity, they are so cute! I’ve never taught my children Santa Clause. They are now 14 and 16. I will never forget it! My little boy was 7 yrs. old and we walked into Wal*mart the cashier asked him, “Are you ready for Santa Clause to come?” My son with a dumb-founded face said nothing. As we were walking away, he whispers to me, “Mom, someone should tell that lady he doesn’t exist!” LOL, It was priceless and I I will never forget it! I now have a 14 month old little boy and he will not be taught Santa either. I never taught them any of they mystical beings. They never suffered felt they were missing out on anything either. Jesus has and always will be my main teaching and lessons to them!
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Thanks so much for this idea. I am going to use it with my almost 3 year old this year. We already have the Storybook Bible. I couldn’t find the clip art for the first ornament — the tree. Did I overlook it? I didn’t see it with the add-ons.
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Kelleigh Reply:
November 25th, 2013 at 1:32 pm
Hi Krista! If you are having a problem with the felt printable downloads, you’ll have to contact Pam. She provided a free set of add-ons, but the original HUGE set is the one that contains the tree and most of the rest of the pieces. You can find that here: http://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/The-Jesse-Tree-Project-436602
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Krista Reitnour Reply:
November 26th, 2013 at 10:07 am
Thanks so much for your help. I thought the tree was a part of the add-ons. I must have overlooked it in the original. Thanks!
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Hello!Could you tell me where you found the List of Advent readings that go along with the Jesus Bible? Thanks a bunch!!
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Kelleigh Reply:
November 26th, 2013 at 11:16 am
Hi Jennifer! I put the advent readings on the free download with the little circles on it!! I know I don’t have a “list”, but there it is!
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such a beautiful idea, i am not familiar with this bible-but want it! I’m really inept at creating things on computer but I’m going to try my best!
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Thank you so much for this! We’ve had the Jesus Storybook Bible for a while and I’ve been meaning to pull together an Advent reading/Jesse tree thing for my 4-year-old but I was having trouble picking one. You sold me! I have 24 little wooden boxes with an opening for a picture where I’ll put the images. The words and a small candy will be inside and we’ll read the Jesus Storybook Bible. I’m so excited to start tomorrow!
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[…] house this year.) We’re using the Jesse tree outline adapted for The Jesus Storybook Bible here. I also downloaded the cute ornaments she features, and that’s what’s in our Advent […]
Do you offer the circle fronts reformatted for a fee? I bought the $6 set from TeachersPayTeachers but I would really like to make the circle ornaments rather than the square ones and I know nothing about Photoshop. Please let me know. Thanks!
This was a phenomenal post!
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Kelleigh Reply:
December 18th, 2013 at 6:58 pm
Hi Karin! I don’t do that, but I did include some basic directions for non-Photoshop users in my tutorial. Basically, you would just shrink down the set you purchased from Pam and punch them with a circle punch. When you go to “print”, just shrink it by a %. Hope that helps!
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