I read an article recently about traditions. The way I interpreted the article, it said that traditions are what make childhoods unique and they build family unity. The idea was that when our kids look back they will remember these traditions with fondness and know they had a good childhood. It also stated that children love routine. Having traditions to look forward to and rely on can give them a sense of security. And knowing that "in our family we do such and such" can give children a sense of belonging.
This particular article piqued my interest because I love traditions. I have always loved traditions, mainly because they are fun. I love the anticipation leading up to an annual event. Most traditions are tied to holidays, and I love a good reason to celebrate. However, as I have ventured further into adulthood I have come to realize that traditions take work. I am pretty sure that at least half a dozen times a year I say (after some holiday or event) "That was fun, we should make it a tradition," only to forget about it and never do it again. Well, that is all about to change. I do love traditions, I am just inherently lazy. So we sat down last weekend and made a list of all the traditions we would like to do as a family. We even wrote them in on the calendar. Now I realize that some of the best traditions are ones that happen naturally, but I hope that this list will get us jump started. Some of these we do already or have done once with the intent of making it a tradition. Others I found on pinterest or blogs. (maybe yours, if so, thank-you!) I know that traditions that are too much work take the fun out of it and defeat the purpose so I tried to keep it simple. A tradition is not something to be dreaded, but rather something to magnify the good in life.
So, without further ado here is a sampling of some traditions that we have or hope to start soon:
-New Year's family time capsule
-Family Valentine's "date"
-Kite flying every spring
-Memorial Day out to breakfast then off to the cemetery
-Daddy/Daughter dates
-Family Movie Nights
-Family campout out back to kick off summer
-back to school party
-go to football games in the fall
-pumpkin carving
-gratitude jar in November
-stories under the tree before bed each night in December
-Advent/Event countdown to Christmas
-New Year's Eve fondue
What is your favorite tradition?
3 comments:
I love this! I'm going to copy some of yours.
Those are great ideas. I especially love the time capsule and backyard campout. Its easy to get so busy that you forget to add fun to your life, and making it a habit/tradition makes it easier.
Basically, you are a super awesome mom/wifey/human being and I love your blog!
Love this! One of my favorite traditions in CO was your yearly Christmas party for the kids, so I'm having one here in CT for my new friends out here! I hope I can do as good a job as you did!!! Are you going to keep it going in Idaho?
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