Do the weeks between cutting the turkey for the Thanksgiving feast and opening presents on Christmas morning feel like a blur every year? Do you vow to stop and take time to really enjoy the holidays with friends and family or do you just try to survive until January 1st?
Every year, like many Americans, I try to find the happy balance between teaching my children the real meaning of Christmas while still sharing in fun holiday traditions. Today I want to talk about one tradition our family loves.
This particular tradition started in my childhood home when I was approximately 12 years old. My parents wanted to help my sister and I collect ornaments so that when we were grown and starting our own family, we had some ornaments to take with us that held special meaning to them.
That tradition has since been carried over into my sister’s family, our family, and still continues with my parents and their many grandchildren and now great grandchildren.
Each year’s ornament for each person signifies something to remember that year – either a favorite new sport, hobby, interest, animal, or saying. For my parents, each year they take a cruise, we get them an ornament centered on that year’s destination.
Do you have any special traditions you celebrate in your family?