Family Traditions

Halloween, Thanksgiving, Chirstmas! They're all coming up so fast!

Family and family traditions are what come to mind too.

I am just getting into blending family traditions and this will be my first Thanksgiving or Christmas with my husband and the Tibbitts side of the family. Jedd and I have talked about what traditions we would like to keep with our family and children, but how do you know which ones to keep and which you would rather not ?

Traditions: inherited patterns of beliefs or behavior

It isn't a bad thing to discard some traditions your family had and it's not a bad thing to keep some. You grew up in a family enjoying family time, and what you all did together. When you get married though, you are opened up to two options or ways you can do things, and it is an exciting time to decide how you want to have you children grow up. It actually really has a big effect on a greater scale because our children go out into the world and share the things they learn in the home. I loved this quote by President Kimball “The nation is built upon the foundation of its homes and the home upon its families.” It is such a privilege to have the opportunity to have such an effect. We can really change the world by what we teach our children and the traditions that we set. Isn't that amazing?

Family can be so fun and the time you spend together is so great.

Some of my favorite traditions were from Christmas. All of the kids would (try to) sleep in the same room, and wait for Santa to come. We would wake up to Christmas music playing, a video camera on us (definitely at our best, haha), and then we would walk either up or down the stairs youngest to oldest to go see Christmas. We had a huge breakfast afterwards! It was fun and we always had a good time at Christmas. 

Now your traditions aren't always holiday traditions. They can incorporate your values, everyday life, and things that you just do all the time. Your kids take most of things with them when they leave home. The habits of family prayer, scripture study, Saturday clean day, even the way that you like to wash clothes. The things they take might be exactly what you did, or it might be something that they want to do differently in their home.  But either way parents have a great influence on their children! 

I am excited to decide how Jedd and I will spend the holidays this year. Even more important I am excited to decide the traditions in my home, and how I want to influence my future family.

I love the songs that EFY puts out for youth, and there is one on the family that I thought I would share. While listening to it, think about what you want with your family. . . 

What does family mean to you?

EFY What Family Means to