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by Carol Cuoco

Have you wondered what your children will carry with them when they venture out onto their own? What will be their fondest memories?

We have "traditionally" associated "traditions" with the major holidays. No matter what your age, you can probably recall the smell of a turkey hot from the oven; the awkwardness brought on by the gathering of relatives who only see each other once a year; the summer vacations in the family car overfilled with teasing, smiling, joking, games and the ever-popular "how much longer?".

But most of us also have tucked away in a place of our heart, things that at the time seemed very trite or routine, and yet are now the things that we call upon to refresh our soul or lift our spirits. Moments like Dad making breakfast on the weekend; the chores we all did together on Saturdays; doing dishes with a sibling; or visiting Grandma every Sunday -- these are the "traditions" of our own families. These are the customs and practices that are unique to our own little unit.

Look to these everyday activities in your family and identify the ones that already have fond memories associated with them. Once you have made note of what you thought were just routines but now realize are special to you and your family, embrace them. These are the moments that will last forever in your mind's eye and are special because they were unknowingly created as traditions and are unique to your own family.

Following is a list of traditions that friends and family have told us they incorporated into their lives:

- Dinner every Sunday night is served in the dining room and with the good dishes -- even if one of us is still dressed for soccer practice.

- Dad makes breakfast every Sunday morning.

- Without fail, it's pancakes every Saturday morning.

- On our birthdays, mom takes us out to lunch and shopping. (Note: this is one you can do forever.)

- On our birthdays, dad takes us out to lunch and shopping.(Note: another one that can go on forever.)

- On our birthdays, the whole family has breakfast together and it's whatever the honoree chooses.

- On each birthday, we awaken to a balloon in our bedroom.

- We attend church together every Christmas Eve.

- We pick out the Christmas tree together every year.

- We take a drive together every Thanksgiving weekend to view Autumn's splendor and have a picnic.

- Mom still takes a picture of us on the first day of school -- even though we are now in High School.

- We vacation together at least once a year -- even if it is just a quick weekend away to a local spot.

- We watch the Academy Awards/Superbowl together every year.

- We play board games/card games every Sunday evening.

We could go on and on with this list and you could probably add many of your own. The bottom line is to treasure those few dinners when everyone is actually home at the same time and to observe and enjoy the times when you realize that you have all found a comfortable spot in the den at the same time and are enjoying each other's company without even knowing it. These are the moments we will choose to re-live and use to warm our hearts for the rest of our lives.

by: Carol Cuoco, Orange, California, USA
carol@go-mom.com
http://www.go-mom.com