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A little history about the advent calendars we know and love today: the actual tradition dates back to the mid-1800s, when German Protestants would make chalk marks or light candles each day as a countdown to Christmas. Gerhard Lang is widely credited with printing the first version of the “modern-day” advent calendar around 1900, and Dwight D. Eisenhower helped popularize them in the United States during his presidency, when he was photographed opening up an advent calendar with his grandkids.
An advent calendar that our kids will love and it doesn’t involve a sugar rush afterward? Sign. Us. Up. Best of all, they can all be paired with the LEGO sets your kid already owns for a new world of play possibilities!
LEGO City 2022 Advent Calendar — $28, Originally $35
Festive and fun, the LEGO City 2022 Advent Calendar features popular LEGO City Adventures TV series characters Billy, Maddy, Mr. Produce, Tippy and Raze, plus a Santa minifigure — and a ton of cool accessories. The back of the box folds down to double as a snowy city playmat too!
LEGO
LEGO Star Wars 2022 Advent Calendar — $36, Originally $45
Star Wars and LEGO fans alike will appreciate the 8 LEGO Star Wars characters and all the other minibuild surprises behind each door of this advent calendar. But let’s be honest: the real draw are the adorable C-3PO and R2-D2 decked out in holiday sweaters … with each other’s portraits on the front. Squeee!
LEGO Star Wars
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LEGO Harry Potter 2022 Advent Calendar — $36, Originally $45
Even Muggles will feel magical when they open up a door each day on this LEGO Harry Potter Advent Calendar! This advent calendar includes 7 LEGO minifigures — Harry Potter, Sirius Black, Moaning Myrtle, Lord Voldemort, Horace Slughorn, Nymphadora Tonks and Neville Longbottom — in addition to iconic items from Harry Potter.
LEGO Harry Potter
LEGO Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy 2022 Advent Calendar — $36, Originally $45
This absolutely amazing LEGO Marvel Studios’ Guardians of the Galaxy Advent Calendar features minifigure characters such as Star-Lord, Rocket, Groot, Mantis and more — and the buildable play experiences include the Guardians’ spaceship, a snowman in Thanos’s armor, and a drone. But honestly? We’re obsessed that it features the most adorable tiny turkey for a perfect little LEGO feast!
LEGO Marvel
LEGO Friends 2022 Advent Calendar — $28, Originally $35
From cupcakes to adorable LEGO reindeer to Santa and his sack, the LEGO Friends 2022 Advent Calendar has all the festive details a LEGO-loving kid could want! All the pieces combine at the end of the month (or, you know, when your kid opens all the doors by December 5th) to create a Christmas market for the included Olivia minifigure and her family.
LEGO Friends
