Traditions...old and new.

This was a kind of a thoughtful weekend for me. As we spent time in Duluth, I found myself thinking back on my family's Christmas traditions and looking ahead to the traditions we are now setting for our son. As a child, I remember watching my mother and grandparents make the holiday candy, looking forward to trim the tree parties, and of course the Christmas holiday itself. Every Christmas Eve we had our set spots around the tree. My brother and I handed out the gifts and there was always good food, music, stories and a lot of laughter.

I can't remember when these traditions started to really shift for me, but after being home it really hit me that the holiday's are different now. Maybe it is the distance between us, my role as wife and mother, or the loved ones we lost, but I found myself having to let go of the traditions that gave me so much joy. I hope that as Ryan and I build holiday traditions for our family, Adam can experience the same joy our family traditions a gave us growing up.

Ryan, Adam and I took a chilly trip to Bentleyville to see all the beautiful lights

Adam and I standing in front of the tallest man-made Christmas tree in the United States
Telling Santa his Christmas wishes

Having a snack in Granny's chair

Cheese!

Decorating the tree

Putting on the reflectors (a Clover family tradition)

I think we outdid ourselves this time!