Family traditions

Even though Brad and I have been married almost 10 years, we have YET to instill many family traditions that are just our own. We still spend most of the holidays with extended family and still continue to do many of the things that our parents did with us growing up. And since we are seldom at home alone on holidays, we haven't really had many opportunities to plan and carry out our own traditions.

But little by little, we have started some fun little traditions that we hope to continue in future years.

Since Sammy has gotten older, we've been able to do more with her. And while I still have a few ideas to do next Christmas with her (like a daily Advent calendar), we've begun with a few, small things.

First, Sammy helped me cook for Thanksgiving. She helped me make the stuffing and the sweet potatoes. She LOVES to help me stir and put ingredients into a bowl. This has been a little hard for me (since I'm a control freak and want things to be a certain way), but I have so enjoyed seeing her joy as she's helped me in the kitchen. She and I both wore our aprons and made a fabulous Thanksgiving meal.


Next, on the day after Thanksgiving, we let her stay up late to help us decorate the tree. She had such a good time telling us where to put the ornaments and helping Brad untangle the lights.


She even put the angel at the top of the tree. I think that was her favorite part!


For Christmas, we give our children three small presents (like the three gifts of the Magi)...we stole this idea from some friends. One is a practical present (like new socks or underwear). One is a fun present (like a toy or game). And the third present is spiritual. This year we bought Sammy and Caleb a play (and plastic) nativity scene. Sammy absolutely LOVED it. Starting December 1, every night before bed, one of us read the Christmas story and Sammy would act it out with the little pieces. (Caleb would join us for it sometimes, but he usually stole Baby Jesus and hid him from Sammy...which drove Sammy crazy because every piece had a special place.) I loved doing this every evening, and by Christmas, she had much of it memorized and would say on cue "do not be afraid, do not be afraid" and "glory to God in the highest!"


And finally, last Christmas in NC, Sammy and her cousin Kaitlyn made a gingerbread house. Sammy enjoyed doing it so much (and talked about it for months) that I brought one to ND for her to do with her other cousins. We let the kids stay up late and let them decorate it to their heart's content. I know this is something we will do every year.


My prayer for my children is that they would know the TRUE meaning of CHRISTmas, and remember fond memories of Christmas time in our home. I want the focus to be on others and on what Christ did for us when He came to this earth as a child, and NOT on the number of presents under the tree. And as they grow, I hope to add more family traditions that will fill their minds and hearts with Christ's love for them.