Do you have a holiday tradition? If you do, congratulations and I hope you continue to enjoy them. If you don’t, I hope you will take a few minutes to read this post and gain an understanding about what makes them important.
Traditions, whether they be seasonal or not are those events and experiences that bring families and friends together. Traditions do not have to big and/or sappy. In fact, sometimes it is small, seemingly unimportant moments that are the most memorable of all. However, since it is the holiday season, I am going to talk about some holiday traditions special to me.
This tradition first started when my 2 boys were little and is one of my favorites. Every Christmas I bought them a special ornament from my favorite Christmas shop called Bronners. Around Thanksgiving, I would start thinking about the past year and reflect on special occasions or notable events in their lives. These ornaments included musical instruments, smiley faces with braces, the year they learned to drive or graduate. Sometimes it was an ornament commemorating a special trip or interest they had. Every Christmas morning, I put the wrapped ornaments in their stockings. As they got older, the running joke became (surprise!) Mom got us an ornament. Sometimes my feelings were hurt because I did not think they appreciated my effort or the sentiment. However, I kept it up and even included my step children after I remarried. Well, now that my boys are (mostly) on their own and have their own Christmas trees, they are appreciating this tradition and are glad I did it and plan to keep doing it!
One tradition that we no longer do is getting ice cream with the kids after we buy our live Christmas tree. Our kids are away at college or living in another city, so it is just my husband and I who buy the tree. And, no, we don’t get ice cream for the sake of our waistbands!
My husband’s favorite tradition is what we call Family Fun Day. (We started doing this when our children were young and just getting to know one another). We pick a day around Christmas and call it Family Fun Day. It is a day we all set aside to be together and do fun activities. Of, course those activities have changed as the kids have gotten older. The first year my husband and I planned various activities that the children had to figure out based on clues we gave them. Other activities included bowling, massages, rock climbing and an Escape Room. The day always includes baking cookies and going out to dinner. This year, since all 4 of the kids will be “legal,” our activity will include a stop into OTR!
As you can see, traditions don’t have to be glamorous or extensive. They just need to be something that you enjoy and can bring people together for some special time and to create fun memories. Sometimes the traditions continue, like Family Fun Day and sometimes they don’t, like ice cream after getting the tree. Remember, that’s OK. Life changes, so change with it. The good news is that it is never too late to start a new Holiday Tradition!