Create Family Traditions

Family traditions are important. It's what draws us together in our immediate family and across generations. Holidays are a time that many families look for and establish traditions. You probably have traditions dating back to when you were a kid: When to open presents, reading Twas a Night Before Christmas, and eating black eyed peas on New Years. You also want to create new traditions for your new family; yourself, your husband, and your children. Last year we started our own version of Elf on a Shelf. You may have heard of the adorable book by the same name which comes with directions and an Elf to join your family. We couldn't find a copy last year and so we took one of our Christmas decorations (a cute little Elf that sits up on his own), and made our own version. And that was how Snowy came to join us last December. Snowy came with a passport and journal where he could write down notes for Santa. This came in handy on those days when no one was behaving! Each night he would move to a different spot in the house and frequently he got into mischief like opening up lots of candy and throwing the wrappers on the floor, or cutting out snowflakes and making a big mess. The kids loved getting up each morning and searching the house for Snowy to see what he was in to that day.

Tonight Snowy rejoins our family and we'll chronicle some of his exploits for you. If you have a great family tradition to pass along, let me know!