We’re always looking for ways to spice up our 12-days-of-Christmas celebration every year. This year, Becky learned about Jólabókaflóð – the Icelandic “yuletide book flood,” which, if you know anything about us, is perfect for our family.

This is part of our 100 Things in 2017 challenge. Click on the photos for a closer look!

Here’s how it works: your family gathers somewhere cozy with a nice beverage, and tears open the packaging on a ton of new books, then picks one and curls up with it for a while. Nice, right?

We found some non-dairy hot chocolate for the kids (they both have an intolerance), and got some Guinness and Fanta for a Jólabland for us (which is surprisingly lovely). Becky found a couple dozen books she knew we’d all love (most of them from the Goodwill), and the kids were vibrating with excitement as they opened each new one and learned about it.

This was a big success, and although it’s a lot of work, it’s worth it for the looks on their faces.