Laura, who was gazing at science curriculum, reluctantly allowed herself to be dragged away. We were at the FPEA Homeschool Convention in May, 2008 at the vendors' hall.
"Look! It's a baby book for Jesus! Is that not the cutest thing in the whole world?" I cooed, picking it up and flipping through the pages. "Look, it says "Before Jesus was born, he was creating the world!" and this page says, "Here are the gifts baby received..." And, here is a page about His parents, God and Mary."
By now, Laura was interested. We scanned through the book several times, and, of course, I had to buy the unit study.

Celebrate the Savior is a unit study that begins with a closer look at the birth of Christ Jesus our Savior revealed in Scripture and progresses into a look at the history of Christmas celebrating and traditions. Bible, history, geography, writing, music, and art are covered in this unit.

The fifteen lesson chronicle Jesus' birth and childhood, each with information and activities or activity sheets. At the end of this unit, children (and mom too!) will have learned about the geography of Palestine, life in Israel at the time of Jesus, early celebrations of Christmas, the plants of Christmas, the animal legends of Christmas, traditions around the world, and pageants around the world.
The Bible stories covered in this unit are Gabriel visits Mary, Mary visits Elizabeth, Jesus' Birth, Trip to the Temple, Wise Men Visit Jesus, Escape to Egypt, and Jesus' visit to the temple. The carols whose history is shared are O Come, O Come, Emmanuel, Away in the Manger, The Twelve Days of Christmas, Good King Wenceslaus, and Once in David's Royal City. They also make the cutest baby book in the whole world about Jesus! This alone is worth the price of the book! Your children will also make a Christmas Traditions around the World booklet with traditions from Denmark, England, Germany, Mexico, Sweden, The Netherlands, and the United States. There are five creative writing assignments: When I Go Visiting, The Birth of our Savior, One of my Heroes, What My Family's Celebration Means to Me, and I Want to Live Like Jesus. After completing and correcting a rough draft, there is a pretty page to write out the essays in our best handwriting!
Celebrate the Savior is available from the Notgrass Company for $9.95 per E-book. You will need one book per child. If you are looking for other unit studies, consider Celebrate Christmas in Colonial America Unit Study or Celebrate Christmas with Cookies.
We used this unit study several years ago and enjoyed it immensely, though some of the activity pages were a little young for the older children. Like me, they loved the baby book. What a worshipful experience it was for me to make the baby book. It just put everything in such a different perspective. Jesus was a real baby with real parents, receiving real presents with real needs. I was struck once again with the wonder of grace, that God would lay His glory aside and become a man. He did not become a full grown man, but rather a helpless baby. Truly His love is breathtaking and His grace amazing!
As you prepare to celebrate the Christmas season, may God's richest blessings and wisdom be upon you!
Merry Christmas!
Love,
Merey
(Meredith Ludwig Curtis)