5 Family Traditions to Start Right Now

I can’t even express how much I love family traditions. Whether it’s something that I’ve grown up doing since my childhood, or a tradition that I got to join when I met my husband; the thought of having something to share year after year with loved ones makes me so excited. Not to mention, that opportunity to make memories is just priceless to me.

Taking Notes from Past Traditions

Growing up, one of our weekly family traditions included going to my great grandparents’ house where the entire family would gather to have lunch. There was homemade pasta, meatballs, pizza, chocolate cake, and my grandmother’s infamous “fried dough”. To this day, this tradition remains one of my favorite memories from childhood. These memories of my family made me want to create the same types of memories for my children.

I feel that having a few traditions is so highly important for families. Whether it’s an event you attend annually or something small that you do together as a family on a weekly basis; having those moments on repeat gives you the opportunity to create unforgettable memories for yourself and your children. It may not seem like a big deal to them now, but I bet that one day they will look back and remember those great little traditions you did together.

Family Time is the Most Important Time

With the hustling and bustling of everyday life, I know it’s hard to narrow down time to do stuff as a family. You’re running from work, to school, to after school events, to cooking and cleaning. Days run together and before you know it, it’s Monday again and a new week has arrived. As a mom, I want to cherish the time I spend with my kids, so I decided to make it a point to do my best to slow down a little in order to have the opportunity to relish in these moments. My son is five and my daughter is two, and I feel like we really only started traditions as a whole family in the last year or so. I took simple things that we did as a family and I made sure to make them happen on repeat so my kids could have something consistent to look forward to. It’s really nothing extravagant, but it’s something we get to do together, and I know that one day they will understand.

The Start of A Tradition

For instance, almost every single Sunday morning I make breakfast for all of us. During the week we are so on the go that the kids are scarfing down food while heading into the car and I don’t eat breakfast because of my fasting, so it is rare that we actually sit down for breakfast together. For this reason, I started to make breakfast every Sunday so that we could take the time to slow down and sit together to enjoy the morning and not feel rushed. Whether it’s making chocolate chip pancakes and bacon or popping frozen French toast sticks in the oven; I try to make it a point to do this almost every single week. At first, I don’t think anyone really noticed that it was a consistent weekly event. The kids wanted to keep playing and not come eat, or they still needed to get a bath before church and we’d only have five minutes at the table together; it didn’t start off as nice as of a tradition as it sounds. Thankfully, after a few weeks everyone started adjusting and realizing Sunday breakfast was going to be a weekly thing we do TOGETHER. Now my husband and children get excited and look forward to our Sunday breakfast.

Looking Forward

We have a few other traditions that we turned into annual family events for the fall and winter, and I can tell that we all get excited when we know the time is nearing to do one of these things as a family.  Just wanted to express that you really don’t have to be extra and go all out in order to create a tradition for your family. Just pick an activity that the whole family likes to do and start doing it on a more regular basis. It will be so worth it and one day you all will look back at the laughs and memories of the times you got to spend together enjoying each other. Below are five family traditions you can start right now.

5 Family Traditions to Start Right Now

1. Have family meals together. Just like my Sunday morning breakfast, you can schedule one day or night a week to ensure you have family time together eating a meal. Whether it’s dinner during the week, or a Saturday cookout; make time to make sure everyone in the house can attend.
2. Have family photos taken. I am making it a point to start having at least one picture taken of my family each year because we went two years without having a picture of the four of us! So going forward, we will either have professional pictures taken or to have someone snap one of us together just to have.
3. Have a seasonal family activity. One of my favorite traditions is going to get our pumpkins as a family in the fall. We head to White House Fruit Farms and get our pumpkins, doughnuts, jams, hot peppers, baked goods, and condiments for the season. We also go Christmas Tree shopping after Thanksgiving. I am trying create Spring and Summer traditions for us as well.
4. Attend or watch church together. Unfortunately, with the pandemic, we haven’t made it back into church yet. We do, however, make it a point to tune into the live stream of mass on Saturday night or Sunday morning. I’m not going to nag you about religion here, but I truly love attending mass with my family.
5. Find a hobby to do together. Whether it’s reading books as a family, doing puzzles, fishing, or watching baseball; there are a ton of activities you can do as a whole family and turn it into a tradition! Find something you all like and enjoy it together.