With eager determination and high expectations, I have entered 2010, in hopes to begin new traditions and aide in creating memories for our family. For the past few weeks, I have been making lists and gathering ideas from around the web to build a supply of fabulous fun for my family. So, without hesitation here are some of my ideas (possibly old to you, but very new to me).
Treasure Boxes- Not the typical ones with dollar store items to reward potty training efforts, good grades, or helping with the family chores. This is for the collection of “treasures” that your kids may find outside, small tokens given to them by others, or something they created. (Some examples- a unique heart-shaped rock like Meg’s family, a broken shell from a robin egg, maybe a birthday sticker from their favorite teacher, or those infamous “fortune tellers”). You know what I mean… the folded paper creation that you made in elementary or even middle school…you know…the one where you say, “Pick a color, pick a number, pick another number”… then lift up the flap and read the results….(Come on admit it—you just had a blushing flashback about those fortune tellers… ok…was it the cute blonde hair blue-eyed surfer type, the tall dark and handsome one that grabbed everyone’s attention, or the quiet red-head that stood in the back of the room and watched everyone else.)…LOL! See? These are the “treasures” that I want my kids to remember. So, we are making treasure boxes.
Masterpieces R Us- Save a few of those wonderful pieces of artwork from school then choose the rest to go to family members near and far. Don’t you think Grandma needs to cover her fridge with some papers too? We are going to use the kid’s artwork as stationery to send thank you notes and sweet messages of love.
Junk Trunk- This will be our “Go-To” box for all the clothes, toys, shoes, games, etc… that we do not want or need anymore. It will be filled then sent on its way to Goodwill or a local church rummage sale. (I am hoping to do this on a monthly basis as to not overwhelm myself and other household members).
Dinner Dates- I think this will be fun! Let the kids decide what is for dinner. Hey, you may even want to give them the same night every week to form a routine. Now that sounds super easy and definitely manageable. Do you think this might help my no fruit, no veggie 4 year old start exploring “greener” palates?
So, as you can see…high expectations! I am such a glutton for punishment, but I really am determined to help my kids see how special the ordinary things in life can be for them.
“For where your treasure is there your heart will be also…”
Please share your ideas for making or preserving memories.
{ 5 comments… read them below or add one }
i love this post…something i thought of doing last nite
my daughther loves to draw..i have endlesss stacks of papers with her drawings everywhere
the fridge is covered, her wall is covered
today will go around taking a photo of all her art…and placing them in an album for her to one day look back on her \"drawing treasures\"
My mother gave my sister and I each a night of the week where we were in charge of dinner – shopping for planning, shopping for ingredients, preparation and service. . . the other sister had clean-up that night! Of course, we were in high school, by then and she supplied ideas, grocery money and lots of support. It was a great way to learn how to manage a kitchen and I still remember feeling so proud to serve my meal.
Missy
http://www.penn-fam.blogspot.com
We too are in a jumble of thoughts over how to make 2010 unique… I just love your ideas! We are starting date nights with the boys. We each take a turn every other week (so it happens weekly) and go to a park just the two of us, or ice cream, or a book store. Danny is really starting to look forward to it and Luke? Well he just likes to attention ;)
Fab Thea, thanks for sharing.
I have a beautiful covered box that was given to me with gifts in for her when she was born. Those first days I was sooo high on mommy – ness, I just put ANYTHING to do with her in the box – cards, papers, notes and so on- for a time when I have the time to go through it and keep what was worth keeping. Later, when she\’s able to do so herself, I\’ll give her access to the box and she can add her own memories to it.
I love the idea of giving her crafts as thank you notes and so on. Thanks!
(By the way, your security code thing for anti-spam, I guess, is really hard to read and makes leaving comments a real pain. I always have to enter at least twice. Is it just me?)
I have 4 kids, almost all grown now, but when they all lived at home we had a tradition of always eating dinner at the table together, no TV, cell phone, just us. We would go around the table each night and everyone had to tell us their \"high point\" and \"low point\" of the day. With six of us that just about took all of dinner time and many nights all we heard was \"recess as the high point\" and \"homework as the low point\" :) but everyone got their say and many nights we all were able to talk about someone\’s high or low or find out something about each other we may not have known otherwise.
When my older kids come visit today (16, 23, 25, 30), they say that dinnertime at the table is a favorite childhood memory of family time and something they want to pass on to their children. It didn\’t intentionally start as a tradition, but my Mom had the same principle, always eat at the dinner table and TALK to your family. I\’m so glad I have passed that on to my kids too.