Our Family Traditions
I was pretty stumped by this week's 26 list prompt all about our family traditions. It's not that we don't have traditions but as the boys have gotten older so many of our family traditions have fallen by the wayside. We do try to add in new traditions to replace some of the old ones but we have no where near as many family traditions now as when the boys were little.
I finally decided to write up a list of ALL the family traditions I could remember.
1. Eating dinner together as a family. I didn't realize how rare it was that we eat dinner together almost every single night and have for as long as I can remember until I began talking to other families. There are times my husband works late or a few of the boys have hair appointments and things like that but it's pretty rare that we don't sit around the table together.
2. Pick a TV series to watch together-- we often pick a TV show (or a few series) to watch together and just watch 2 or so each night until we've seen every episode. We just finished up Boy Meets World and are working our way through Girl Meets World.
3. Having birthdays be a holiday off from school & letting the birthday boy or girl pick the day's activities and evening meal.
4. Alec and I have an annual birthday shopping/ lunch date that the other boys have slowly started to adopt too-- Funny enough this tradition started based on my own lunch/ shopping trip with my mom on/ near my birthday. (Below is the photo from this year's trip to Ikea and lunch at Outback Steakhouse)
5. Reading to each boy at night before tucking them in which slowly morphed into me reading aloud at breakfast while the boys eat as they got older and didn't want bedtime stories anymore.
6. Family movie and pizza night every Friday-- During the whole month of December we tend to add in special themed snacks for after the pizza too.
7. We watch ELF every year Thanksgiving night-- We typically get a fire going in the fireplace and eat our dessert while watching and even though we all know most of the words by heart now it doesn't matter.
8. We meal plan as a family each week-- Usually at dinner the night before we are heading out grocery shopping I ask each person to pick one or two nights and come up with a menu idea.
9. If we're driving somewhere together (like on vacation) we'll listen to a book on CD together.
10. Dying Easter eggs using new and different methods each year -- We started out using the PAAS kits and slowly began trying other things like tie dye, fizzing eggs, painting using liquid watercolors, etc.
11. We used to get take out Chinese food each year for New Year's Eve and play family board games until bedtime (which has never once been midnight!)-- We loved this tradition and only stopped the year we learned it was going to a 4 hour wait for our takeout order!!
12. Family reunion 4th of July party at the lake.
13. We decorate the Christmas tree together and each boy gets a new ornament with name and date printed on it each year--I try to make sure the ornament symbolizes something from that year like a new skill learned or a place we traveled to.
14. Day trips to celebrate Mother's day, Father's Day & birthdays-- Most father's days we end up kayaking down the river or hiking with my husband. We've spent mother's day at the museum, the zoo, or kayaking too. The boys have picked birthday "trips" to the aquarium, the zoo, the adventure park.
15. Ice cream for dinner at least one night each summer -- They can order whatever they want too.
I'm sure we have even more traditions as I am big on making memories and cherishing each season/ moment with my boys but those are the only ones I can think of right now.
What are some of your favorite family traditions?
Linking up with:
Love these traditions- so special- I bet your boys do too and will recreate some of them with their own families some day! :)
ReplyDeleteI hope they at least keep a few of them going with their family. I know I carried over a few from my own childhood.
DeleteI love reading other families traditions. Your family is so sweet and your traditions seem so special. I love posts like these, thank you for sharing them with us.
ReplyDeleteI love reading about other people's traditions too! I'm always on the hunt for new ones to try picking up and adding in to our lives.
DeleteI love reading your traditions! I think that it is so awesome to have a sit down dinner with the whole family every night! Thank you for an awesome post!
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteOh I just love all of these! Your post has me so excited for Christmas even though I'm sure it'll look a little different this year. That won't stop us from enjoying every second!
ReplyDeleteGosh I haven't even given a thought to Christmas at all this year!
DeleteThese are all so great! What great memories and legacies to pass on to your kids.
ReplyDeleteThank you!
DeleteI love these! I like reading to my kids sometimes too.
ReplyDeleteI'm just so thrilled that they still want to listen.
DeleteI love reading other people's traditions! We have an aunt who gives all the young cousins a new Christmas ornament with their name and year each Christmas. I love they will have quite a few of their own when they have their own tree! We let the birthday girl pick their dinners too!
ReplyDeleteI do keep thinking how bare my tree will look when they all take their ornaments with them but I just love that, like me, they'll have memories associated with almost every single ornament they hang.
DeleteTraditional activities do change as our kids grow up, and that made me sad at first, but new fun comes to take their place.
ReplyDeleteI'm always a bit sad when they end but we do always find something new to take their place.
DeleteI loved reading about all of these traditions. I am inspired to now blog about our family's traditions. Thanks for the idea!
ReplyDeleteSo glad I could inspire you!
DeleteSuch precious memories you have created with your children. Chinese food on New Year's is a great tradition. I used to do something similar with ornaments for the girls. Now that they have their own homes and trees, I am buying a new ornament each year for PC and me that represents the year past.
ReplyDeleteI read to my daughters every night. First to the two together and then to each one alone. I remember still reading to my youngest daughter in middle school before bed!
My boys mostly wanted to read alone... together! Lol. I'd start reading Ian his book and at least one of the other boys' would come into Ian's room and listen and then they'd each take a turn listening to a book in their own room but the other two almost always followed us.
DeleteLove all of these traditions - many are similar to ours! - and isn't it fascinating how some of the simple things become so meaningful? Thank you for linking up and sharing these ideas.
ReplyDeleteIt is pretty fascinating how some of the simplest things become so meaningful.
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