Traditions
I am a pretty traditional gal. I love to have an echo of years past in the things that I do in the present. For example, we trim our tree every year with an ornament that is bought or made to represent something about each family member — a characteristic of theirs, a trait, a desire, a struggle they faced, or a personality quirk. Our tree is filled with memories of the past years spent trimming the tree and enjoying our ornaments. Last year my son got a toy soldier ornament since he blogs under that name, and my husband got a wooden ornament shaped like Punxsutawney Phil. He was coming home after spending, what felt like an eternity, in HHC. He would text me every day to say “Happy Groundhog Day, AGAIN!” It’s a funny and tongue in cheek reminder of what he survived last fall.
We went for a long car drive in the Country on Sunday evening. It’s one of our favorite traditions to do after the hottest days of summer and before the coldest days of winter. There is nothing more relaxing than taking a fall drive in the Country. We are a little early for our most favorite season, but it’s fast approaching.
What kinds of traditions do you and your family hold? Are they traditions that have been with you for many generations, or new ones? If they are old traditions, where did the start and why? If they are new, what prompted you to begin it, or was it happenstance? Do you have weekly traditions? Monthly? How about Seasonal?
Here are our Fall traditions that we look forward to every year:
* Going to apple festivals in our area.
* Making and canning homemade pumpkin and apple butter and small loaves of bread to hand out to friends and family.
* Making a pretty Fall wreath and other decorations with leaves we find on nature walks and gourds we get at the store.
* Attending a small bon fire put on by friends from our Church. We make S’mores and visit with friends.
* Put out my favorite Fall and Winter scented candles for the season… cinnamon, pumpkin, spices, and mulberry.
* Getting a new family picture made when everyone’s together.
September 8th, 2008 at 8:07 am
Clarie,
sounds like you read our book. LOL
Sue and I have all those traditiona nad many more.
We ahve been so blessed with lots of found memories of the past 40 years we find it dificult to stop any of the old ones but we keep adding more new ones LOL.
The Kids, now 37&31 referr to the Christmas tree lovingly as the junk tree because we have 40 years of orniments on it ones made when the kids were babies through school and now into adulthood, just adding our first grandchild last year.
We love and look so forward to reminicing every year.
BTW When Sue and I were first married my Mom had a Christmas album she played all the time. We still play it. The New Christy Minstrals Christmas. 40 years old. (Hootnany music)
Thanks for getting the old memory maker going again this morning.
September 8th, 2008 at 8:16 am
Clarie,
Excuse my typing. I hit submit before checking it. Now my edit button is missing! I can’t operaate without my edit buton! LOL.
September 8th, 2008 at 9:44 am
Hey Doug! The Christmas tree is one of my all time favorites too. I have handmade ornaments designed and glued by a nephew who died of leukemia many years ago. It’s very precious to hand those, and we have so many other — very happy memories to relive each year. We are a couple of decades behind you on collecting, but we’re catching up! haha!
I am not a Johnny Mathis fan, but we have his Christmas album, and it’s cheesy and funny lounge music… and i love it! That and Handel’s Messiah of course.
September 8th, 2008 at 3:02 pm
How about Mele Kalikimaka By Bing Crosby.
Christmas in Hawaii. LOL. So funny but the kids, as corny as it was would not finish the tree trimming without pliaying it.
Blessings to you and yours as another Christs Birth Celebration aproaches.
September 8th, 2008 at 5:31 pm
Well, I just wrote a really long response, but didn’t put in my email address so I got an error message and when I hit the back page, the whole post erased. So I’ll just leave it as “great blog!”
September 8th, 2008 at 6:13 pm
Ah, Jill! I am sorry your response was lost. I think that is one of the most maddening things! Thank you for reading and responding. I appreciate the company!
September 9th, 2008 at 9:12 am
Every year since we became engaged, the wife and I get one of the dated Hallmark ornaments for our tree. Since we added kids, each of them gets one as well. Soon, we’ll have one tree for the kids ornaments alone (including ones made at school, daycare, etc), and another one for the adults.