When your kids look back on their childhood what do you hope they remember? My goal as a mom has always been to create memories that will last my kids a lifetime. I wanted to be a Memory Making Mom.
You can do this by creating traditions, spending quality time with your kids and by having fun. This is the magical formula to becoming a Memory Making Mom.
When Peyton was born my friend Brandy and I spent countless hours coming up with traditions that we were going to do with our kids. We had a lot of time waiting for our babies to come home from Guatemala, so we spent that time coming up with ideas.
We came up with ideas for traditions by holiday, events and for travel. Here are some of our traditions.
Memory Making Mom:
Traditions by Holiday:
Christmas: 25 Christmas Books leading up to Christmas Day, Reindeer Food, Decorate our Christmas Tree together, Christmas Eve Church Service, Birthday Cake for Jesus
Valentine's Day: I cook a family dinner with favorite foods and desserts, and we exchange Valentine's Gifts
St. Patrick's Day: Dress in green, have a green lunch and drink
Easter: Easy Resurrection Rolls for Easter Morning, go to Church, enjoy a family dinner, Easter Egg Hunt, Easter Bunny fills baskets
July 4th: Watch a 4th of July Parade, BBQ with the family, watch fireworks and light sparklers.
Halloween: Dressing up and trick or treating. We would make chili and a Jack-O-Lantern pizza from Papa John's. Also, fun Halloween Recipes and Tips.
Thanksgiving: I cook a Thanksgiving meal and we share what we are thankful for
Traditions by Event:
Birthday: Birthdays are a big deal at our house. We celebrate all week long generally. Depending on the time of the year and if it is a big number. 10, 13, 16 and 18 have been big one. And the golden birthday.
Back to School: We always take pictures on the first day of school, new outfit and a special breakfast.
Spring Break: Regardless of if we travel or not, we do fun staycation activities or take a trip when possible.
Summer Bucket List: We always make a summer bucket list of 30 times we hope to accomplish during the summer. They may include activities or places we hope to see.
Travel Bucket List:
- Chicago
- Pennsylvania
- Grand Canyon
- Washington, DC
- NYC
- Beach
- Disney
- Cruise
- Hawaii
- Passport Travel
- All 50 States
When Peyton was little, we immersed ourselves in a variety of activities. We joined the local Mom's Club, MOP's and Friends Through Guatemalan Adoption. Shelley and I raised our babies together. We purchased memberships to the Cincinnati Zoo, Newport Aquarium, Cincinnati Museum Center and King's Island. Peyton and I took Mommy and Me classes at Kindermusik, the local gym and took advantage of the free programing at our local library. Hia favorite was puppy tails. I left my teaching career when Peyton came home to spend time with him, and this is something I will never regret.
Regardless of if you can stay home or not you can be a Memory Making Mom. It is about quality not quantity. The most important thing I can share is when you are with your child to be fully connected and PUT YOUR DEVICE AWAY. They will remember the time spent together more than things.
If you want to start traditions at any age you can! Just do it! Then do it again and again. My twenty-year-old moved to Florida and text me on Easter morning to say how much she missed the Resurrection Rolls. You can become a Memory Making Mom at any age in your kids' lives.
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Melissa is a soccer mom who has been married to her best friend for 22 years. She loves sharing recipes, travel reviews and tips that focus on helping busy families make memories.
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