Kids & Christmas: Part 1 - Traditions

This is part 1 of a 5 part series on Christmas and kids.  For those of you that know me please stop thinking, "Oh sure, and we'll get the rest of it next Christmas".....smarty pants!  I've written them all (or have in my head) and won't post the first until the last is ready to post.  It could be that this will never see the light of day.....but I digress.

Traditions are important to children.  Traditions ground them to who they are and where they belong.  It gives them good and solid memories of happy times.  Traditions help them know what is really important about your family, the holiday, and your values regarding both.  It says something if your holiday traditions involve buying and getting.  It says something else if your traditions involve cooking and eating.  It says even something else if your traditions involve giving and serving.  Not that there is anything wrong with any of these things....it's just that they all say something. 

Another interesting thing about traditions is the criteria for a tradition.  Maybe it's just my kids but it seemed to me that if we did a thing one time it was a tradition.  "We do that every year!" my kids would say (even though I'm pretty sure we did it for the first time just last year).  I raised some pretty sentimental kids....they really dig their traditions.  For instance, we open Christmas presents on Christmas Eve at my parent's house.  The kids have their spot to sit as they open their gifts.  This year we are going on a family trip and won't be at Grandma's house on Christmas Eve.  The person most upset by this?  My 26 year old son!!!  He's "severely bummed" that he can't sit in his spot and open gifts at Grandma's house.  His siblings aren't a whole lot happier.   My point is this.....all that elaborate Elf on a Shelf stuff you did last year?  You'll have to do that and more this year. 

So think about your traditions.  What are the things you do "every year" that your kids would screech about if you didn't do them?  What do those things say about your family and what you value?  Consider talking about those traditions with your kids.  Call them traditions, claim them as yours, talk about why you do them and what they say about you.  Also consider this.....if you thought about your favorite things about Christmas I bet it would be traditions from when you were a kid.  What is your child going to remember?  And, once more, what does that say about you and your family? 

NEXT:  Kids & Christmas:  Part 2 - Reasons