Time...it's worth it.

Family traditions.

Jeter's class has been discussing family traditions. This past week they had to complete a project where each student is responsible for making a quilting square. The middle of the square was to display their family (via photo or drawing). The four corners were designated for traditions within your family. This week they are presenting their squares to the class and then together constructing a class quilt.

The four traditions that Jeter selected were:

• Birthdays. He highlighted that they always wake up to a room full of balloons, they get to choose two flavors for their homemade ice cream cake and then they get a special cake designed by mom for their birthday party with family and friends.
• New York Giants. Apparently the fact that we are all NYG fans and watch the games together (when it is on TV - excluding night games for the boys) is a tradition in his book.
• Christmas. He noted that our family celebrates the birth of Jesus Christ and that we spend time together decorating cookies and the tree.
• Fun Family Friday. This is a "new" tradition that was birthed this Fall. With the many scheduled evenings, we made sure to have a nice evening together on Fridays. Friday's are now characterized by enjoying pizza and ice cream sundaes as well as some fun activity together.

As parents, we often (at least Simms and I do) think about the big things that impact our children. At times this can eclipse the importance and relevance of the day-to-day stuff. Isn't it interesting that a larger percentage of what my son perceives as meaningful and important doesn't cost a ton of money? The cost is really time - to make things together, talk together and play together. Finally, Jeter summarized the importance of his family's traditions by stating that they create a strong family bond.

He may only be eight but I think he's on to something...

What is one of your family traditions?