Family Traditions and the 4th of July

I just love family traditions.

I love hearing about other families traditions, other cultural traditions and I love knowing our boys are growing up with many wonderful traditions of our own that continue to lead to wonderful memories.



My husband's family has an annual 4th of July tradition where all the relatives meet on a Saturday close to the fourth and have a huge cookout.

 His aunts, uncles, cousins (and now their kids-- some with friends and girlfriends), grandparents, etc. all come.  He has a huge and wonderful family and everyone has a great time.

We have kayaks galore, boats, jet ski's, rafts, tubes, volleyball, beanbag toss games, balloons, and we eat all day long.

We fish, jump off the bridge, use the rope swing, go paddle boating, and swim a lot.

We bring dishes to share and while many of them are yearly traditions in and of themselves, we always throw several new ones into the mix.  The kids get to try new foods, meet up with cousins they haven't seen in a year or so and make "new" (again)  friends.

We light fires, roast marshmallows for s'mores, light sparklers (sometimes), watch firework displays from around the lake if anyone happens to be having a display and just enjoy being with family.
     
Yesterday wasn't much different.

It was a very hot, muggy day on the lake but we didn't let that stop us from having all our usual fun.

Many of us moms have our cameras out and a ton of photos are taken of the day. 

I love that all these family traditions lead to family memories.  Many times over the course of the day you hear "remember the time...." or "what year was it that...."  It's great too to see these wonderful relationships develop and bloom between all the kids and their cousins (even if they are second or third cousins).

The older kids take time to play with the younger kids, include them in their games and take them for jet ski rides, paddle boat rides, or even teach them to kayak.  They see family pitching in to help one another.

We all cook food, we all help each other's kids, we all wash dishes, move tables and chairs around and watch each other's kids.  The boys know they can ask ANYONE for any kind of help during the day and they'll get it.  Our hope is that this traditions continues on through the ages and through the generations.

Memories like these are priceless. 









Washing dishes the old fashioned way

All the cousins-- with ice cream; our bribe to get them all to sit!

It was yummy!
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Tots and Me

Comments

  1. Melanie ReddJuly 7, 2016 at 8:01 AM

    Oh, I love lake days and holidays with the kids!
    And, what a gift - partial college tuition!
    Found you on 100 Days today.
    Blessings,
    Melanie

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mother of 3July 7, 2016 at 8:20 AM

      They sure are fun. It's neat to see how much all the kids grow from year to too; many of the cousins are scattered and we only see them on the 4th.

      Delete
  2. Deborah WillJuly 7, 2016 at 11:05 AM

    What wonderful family traditions. Savor all those memories.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Mother of 3July 7, 2016 at 12:03 PM

      That's really what traditions are all about aren't they; the memories.

      Delete

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