Traditions help families bond over the years, and can be created from a variety of different sources. It can be movies, books, even pop culture or whatever you want them to be.
Encouraging your family to get involved in family traditions only relies on one major thing: Your family. You have to be sure to include them in the planning and execution of the event.
This takes away some of the stress and helps them feel like they have some control over the situation. The actual tradition itself doesn’t have to even be planned around a holiday. It can be something totally unique to you and your family.
We’ll show you in this article how much fun starting a new tradition can be.
We’ll be discussing:
- Anytime traditions
- Holiday traditions
- Why traditions are so important
- How to keep traditions going
Read on to learn more about how to create family traditions.
Ways to Create Family Traditions
Anytime Traditions
Start a Happiness Jar
If you’re a child, this tradition is probably the easiest of all. You make a simple jar full of coins and decorations. When you come home from school, you pull out a coin. That means you got 100%.
After school, you make a card for your family. That means you did your homework and didn’t miss the bus. After dinner, you can pull out another coin. This means that you have been a perfect angel all day.
At night, pull out a new coin. That means you are ready for a night of good fun.
Have the Same Meal on the Same Day Every Week
Cook your favorite meal together and eat together. Create an ice cream night for when it’s too hot to have dinner outside or grill in the backyard. Just gather everyone in the living room to share ice cream and dessert.
Host a Family Talent Show
Write your family’s favorite poem or story together. Develop traditions that promote creativity, a sense of security, and a strong sense of family unity. You can build this night into a tradition for everyone to remember, like hosting an Entertainment Night.
Have a Show and Tell Night
Show and Tell can be an effective strategy to help kids learn new skills and to enrich their knowledge. It can develop their vocabulary and improve their social skills.
Do you need to teach your kids what Show and Tell is? It’s a simple concept. You bring in an item to share with the class and tell the group something about it.
Take a Daily or Weekly Family Walk
Are you looking for a way to spend quality time with your family? Do you want an activity that is easy to organize, and even easier to do?
Taking a family walk is the perfect way to enjoy time together and keep fit. You can talk and laugh about anything you want.
Read Bedtime Stories
Bedtime stories were and still are a favorite tradition in any home. Reading is a great way to engage kids in a learning experience. Maybe it was the story, maybe it’s the warmth of being next to someone.
Just sharing the bond of reading before bed is so important. Yes, bedtime stories are a form of stimulation, but they also teach kids valuable lessons about life.
Plan a Monthly Mommy/Daddy Date With Each Child
Kids love adventure dates with their parents. It doesn’t matter if it’s a trip to the zoo or just making popcorn and watching a movie.
Making a date with your child is a great time to just chill and talk about anything. You can make a meal together, learn a new skill, etc. It’s really about sharing time with someone you love.
Choose a Community Service Project
Sometimes, being part of the community is the best way to get to know your neighbors. A great way to get to know your neighbors is by volunteering at a nonprofit organization or a family shelter.
Volunteering helps your family bond as well as helping others at the same time. Plus it’s a tradition that helps promote being social and helpful.
Holiday Traditions
Deliver Homemade Treats to Friends and Neighbors
Very little beats a homemade treat. Baked goods are perfect little gifts to give to a neighbor or a friend. It shows them you care about them and you appreciate all they do.
Of course, small treats are always good, but there are some really cool treats that you can make and deliver. Plants, flowers and many other items can be used as a perfect way to say “Thanks”.
Camp Out in Front of Your Christmas Tree
Who can hold the biggest “Camp Out For Santa” party? Why not have a camp out by the Christmas tree? The kids (and adults) will go crazy for this idea.
You can talk all night about what christmas means to you. Plus, you can all make a special Christmas breakfast. Christmas pizza anyone?
Go Shopping for Children and Families in Need
The best part of the holidays is gifting. And it’s an opportunity to create new family traditions with your children. This year, as you’re out shopping, look for families in need.
Pick an organization near your house. Find the families that are struggling. And then make Christmas a little easier for them. If you’re a parent, perhaps you already buy a few gifts for kids who are in need. But why stop there? Go a step further and pick one family in your community.
Then, volunteer to deliver their gifts. The best part? You’re doing it just for fun. And your children will have such a good time doing it, they’ll actually look forward to it.
Plan a Holiday Haul Pick-Up From the Library
Pop on your Santa hat and head off to your local library with your family. Everyone can pick out their favorite holiday classic book to bring home. Each person can read them out loud with the family. Now you can all get in the holiday spirit and make a tradition.
On Birthdays, Present Your Child With Two Envelopes
Kids love presents, so why not make their birthdays a real tradition, “Two Envelope Style”. For example, the first envelope can be a card with a recap of the last year. It could contain special pictures, a souvenir or anything.
The second envelope could contain a special note about new responsibilities, or the achievement of a new privilege.
Conduct Birthday Interviews Every Year for Each Family Member
Make sure that your children enjoy talking about their birthdays and why they’re important. Send birthday cards to everyone in your extended family on their birthday with a short note in it.
Talk about your best and worst moments on your child’s birthday. Get it on video each year. Give your child some words to use in recalling the memory. Do the same for other important events in your family’s lives.
Leave Love Notes to Your Kids
I’m sure there’s no one you love more than your kids. You want them to know that every day. When they leave the house, a little love message tells them you love them and want them to be happy.
You can even write love notes for them to find after school. It could be to let them know you’re proud of them or that you’ll be waiting for them at the end of the day.
You can give them advice about something that helped you become who you are today. It doesn’t have to be a big note. Just something to let them know you’re there for them.
Why Are Traditions Important?
Make Memories for Families That Last a Lifetime
- Tradition offer something unique that matters to your family
Provide Children a Sense of Security by Providing Continuity
- It helps the younger generation become more social and aware
Give Family Members a Strong Sense of Belonging
- Traditions can build unbreakable bonds and promotes a sense of community
Help Pass on Family Values Including Cultural and Religious Heritage
- Items such as a traditional costume or heirloom can be passed to each family member for safekeeping.
- Each person watching over the item can leave messages for the next keeper saying what the item means to them.
Keep Generations Connected and Give Them a Family History To Share
- Generations old and new can connect in unique ways by having an updated tradition. It’ll only add to everyone’s education about their family.
How to Keep Traditions Going
The Best Way To Keep Traditions Going Is To Make Sure That Whatever It Is, It Has To Be:
- Enjoyable for everyone
- It must be inclusive, so that anyone from kids to your 114 year-old relative can participate.
- Everyone involved needs to have a say. Creating a tradition is supposed to be about fun, not about someone being a control freak about it.
Wrapping Up
Family is a priceless thing. It means a lot to be with the ones that you love and care for. There are many ways that you can create traditions with your family. Some of them can help make you closer and bring a little more meaning to being a family.
As you can see, how to create family traditions is not all that hard. Most of them will bring you together, make memories, and make the holidays seem that much more magical. And that’s what family traditions are all about..