Many of you may have started your business in order to have a flexible schedule that allowed you to spend more time with your family. It is during the holidays when that time can be even more meaningful. If you have children in your life, now is the time to start your own holiday traditions.
A tradition is something that a person or family does year after year. Traditions are often the one thing that stands out when an adult looks back on their childhood. They bring smiles to their faces and help them remember their family and where they come from. Holidays are one of the times when traditions become prominent.
They give children something to look forward to and to count on. When families create holiday traditions, they’re creating something unique to that family. It’s a powerful bond. As your children grow up, they may hold onto their family traditions and share them with their own children. Even if they don’t hold onto the tradition, you can rest assured they’ll remember them fondly.
The first step to creating holiday traditions is to look at activities or events your family has enjoyed in the past. For example, perhaps you went to see the Nutcracker as a family last year. That could become a holiday tradition. Maybe your family enjoys baking cookies, decorating your tree or going ice skating. (If you’re new to ice skating, check out these beginner’s tips from Karen Minogue)
Next, take a look at activities your family might enjoy together. Traditions don’t have to be elaborate; they can be quite simple. For example, you might read The Night Before Christmas together on Christmas Eve.
Once you’ve pinpointed a tradition or two to adopt this year, relax. Don’t go overboard with too many traditions. You can wind up exhausted from trying to meet everyone’s expectations. Additionally, make sure to get your family on board with the traditions. Make them responsible for some aspect of the tradition so everyone is involved.
For example, if your family tradition is to decorate the tree to holiday music, assign one child to choose the music, one child to retrieve the ornaments and the adults can put up the tree. When everyone has a role to play, it brings the entire family together.
Family traditions are a fun way to remember the holidays. Traditions that you establish from year to year will stick with your children long into adulthood. They’ll become part of the story of their life.