Our Yearly Traditions

Many of you wanted to see what our family does in terms of traditions for the various seasons in the year. You reached out on instagram, but it was way too long for a post, so here is our “list” of traditions:

Thanksgiving

• Gratitude tree every night at dinner

• Book basket for kids of seasonal books

• Gratitude list on chalk board for all who come over to write on

• Activities for kids 

Advent

• Table cards at dinner each night beginning Nov. 27

• Advent candles on table - black with greenery 

• Book basket

• Bake Gingerbread men

• 12 days of Advent coloring + Jesus Storybook Bible reading 

• Outside Neighborhood Christmas Tree

• Narration Notebooking of the story of Christ's birth

• Books/devo’s for adults

  • Timothy Keller “Hidden Christmas”

  • Richard Rohr “Preparing for Christmas” (daily meditations)

  • Living the Christian Year - Bobby Gross

  • The First Songs of Christmas - Nancy DeMoss Wolgemuth

Christmas

• Jesus’s birthday cake and sing happy birthday -- panetonne cake

• Neighborhood cookie exchange

• Hot chocolate, Christmas jammies and look at lights 

• Movies:

  • What’s in the Bible “Why do they call it Christmas?”

  • Elf

  • Charlie Brown’s Christmas

  • Nutcracker

  • White Christmas

  • Snowy Day
    

• Gratitude gifts for mailman and other service people in our lives

• Christmas Eve Service

Epiphany

• Chalk the door 

• Epiphany party

• we still have not come up with a great way to remember this season! My friend recommended the book “Good Dirt” by Lacy Finn Borgo and Ben Barczi which has some ideas so I’m excited to dig into that soon!

Ordinary Time

• Quiet times alone at home, goal setting, spiritual growth, discipleship

Valentine’s Day 

• Leave a note for kids in mailbox every day 

• Leave flowers for single moms, divorced, widowed, etc. 

• Book basket

Kids

• Breakfast: 

  • donuts with pink icing

  • strawberries

  • Pink/red juice

  • Red/pink table cloth, paper hearts all over table, pink baloons, small gifts to unwrap

  • OR

  • Pancake bar https://www.dayswithgrey.com/blog/2017/1/14/valentines-preschool-pancake-party-nut-free

• Dinner:

  • Take out and dress up, read scripture on love, dance party 

Lent

• Lenten journey frame with prayer, fasting, almsgiving on rotation

• Passion tree with paintings to hang

• Decorate a bit with touches of purple, greenery and lambs

• Devotional 

• Easter/Lent book basket 

• Neighborhood Easter egg hunt 

Holy Week

• Read lectionary each day starting on the Saturday before Palm Sunday …start with 7 candles lit, and each day blow out one candle until the last candle goes out on Good Friday. Noël Piper’s Seven Candles.

• Attend Good Friday service 

Easter 

• Light all 7 candles and have a “lamb” cake for breakfast (just a round cake with an icing lamb face)

• All 7 candles are lit

• Big feast breakfast

• Hallelujah music playing

• Church with family 

• Easter egg hunt for easter baskets in the afternoon 

St. Patrick’s Day

• party or dinner of dad's recipe

• book basket

New Years Eve.

• apps -- flatbreads, buffalo dip, fruit, pigs in a blanket, veggies, etc

• sparkle juice or champagne in fancy glasses with OJ

• make shakers from paper plates

• kids countdown on youtube

• watch a fun movie

• read our thankfulness from the year

• write out challenges and things that we are grateful for from the year

Is there anything you would add to this?