Joyful Waiting

This is a great site for Advent. Father Pat's Place is another great one, too.
Advent Symbols:

The Circle of the Wreath: God Himself, His eternity and His endless mercy, without beginning, nor end.

The Green of the Wreath: Our hope of newness, renewal and eternal life.

Light of the Candles: The Light of God that came into the world through Christ to bring newness, life and hope.

Lighting the Candles: The progressive departure of darkness from the world as the more and more light is shed through the candles.

Four Candles: The four weeks of Advent, representing the four centuries between the time of the Prophet Malachi and the birth of Christ.

Three Coloured (purple or blue) Candles: A period of waiting, expectation and preparation.

The First Candle: A time of expectation and hope.

The Second Candle: The peace that is to come.

The Pink (or Rose) Candle for the Third Week: It symbolizes joy for the promise is almost fulfilled.

The Fourth Candle: The love of God for mankind.

The Fifth White Candle (if applicable). Called the "Center Candle", it is lit on Christmas Eve or Day to display that the light of Christ has come into the world in fulfillment of the prophecies.

So here we are entering this first week of Advent. The first purple candle represents hope. As I await the coming of Christ's birthday, I hope for a transformation within. I pray to become more like HIM, and that I may set aside those distractions which darken my being. I pray that I can invite HIM into my heart and home, to prepare myself for HIS coming. I am hopeful I can do this, with HIS help.

Blessings this Advent to you and your families.