The second craft day I ever hosted, I asked the girls if they wanted me to make coffee. Everyone said yes and some even said they were looking forward to the coffee all morning remembering that I served it the previous craft day. There was nothing fancy about the coffee (though I do keep a hearty supply of Torani syrups on hand!) but the fact that they anticipated and expected it meant we were making a craft day tradition.
The thing is people like to know what to expect. A surprise here and there is fun but there is safety and comfort in looking forward to something that is consistent.
I read something once that talked about the importance of creating traditions in a family. Especially during the holidays it is difficult to balance the pressures of too many traditions (which is a whole other topic) but I think the point was to make things consistent so that they could form a memory.
When I look back on my own childhood it was the consistent things we did that I have the most memories of. It doesn't have to be extravagant but the fact that we did it year after year or that we had a certain type of food at a certain type of event, those are the things that are remembered. And not to much surprise, often so many of our memories are based around food.
So find a really great homemade pizza recipe or always buy a certain type of ice cream for someone's birthday. Always have board games out at family dinner or have friends over on Groundhog's Day.
I loved that this last year so many of our friends looked forward to our holiday dessert party. Not only will our guests remember our party but they will remember preparing for our party...coming up with a recipe to make and taking all day to bake it. It's not just another holiday party but it's something that people look forward to, can rely on having every year, and as a result are making memories of.
For me and my husband we have made some simple and fun traditions for the everyday. When we go see a movie together we get a California burrito from Adalberto's, stuff them in my purse, and eat it in the theater. It's really nothing special but my husband loves it! And I rarely want to eat at Adalberto's (it's a greasy, delicious, authentic Mexican restaurant) so for me it's a treat that I can enjoy without much guilt. But the fact that we do this almost every time we go to see a movie (which isn't very often) we have created a memory and a tradition that we both look forward to.
I encourage you to consider the celebrations as well as the everyday moments in life. Let's be more thoughtful of the memories we are helping our family and friends to create.
// What small traditions do you celebrate?
