Rituals

I'm one of those people that really loves traditions/rituals. I come from a family that is HUGE on them. As I mentioned before my parents came over from Poland and we still held on to many of the traditions they had over there. Our Christmas Eve dinner is about 13 courses and served in a particular order, we bless Easter Baskets on Holy Saturday and so many more things that are true to the old country. While all those traditions are so dear to me I truly think the ones you establish within your families yourself are the most meaningful.

I remember when I was a child going to the library every Saturday with my parents - they would let us pick out anything we wanted and however many. I once cleared out the Brooklyn Public Library of every Berenstein Bears book they had. My dad had the joy of carrying all of those back for me! (I was 5 and they were heavy!) After the library we would always head to Carvel. I would get a Chocolate Chocolate Chip cone (always a cone - to this day) and then only eat half of it. Simple treats but they stuck with me until today.

Joey and I recently started our own simple ritual that we both have grown to love. When we moved into our new house we decided not to take our couches with us. They were in pretty awful shape and there was a couch and chair left behind by the previous owners at the new house. (In a lovely 70's palm tree print) I've thrown some fabric over the furniture until we buy our dream set and we were alright. Until it came time to watch a movie on our new TV. This couch was not made for snuggling. It fits one person semi-comfortably.

Solution - we grabbed all our extra blankets and made a pallet on the floor. The dog curled up at our feet and we had our own little mini date. Ever since then every time we go to watch a movie one of us grabs the blankets and starts making that pallet. These dates don't cost us a thing - we watch a movie off the free on demand channel and we already had the blankets. The important thing is that its our own tradition - I have a feeling even after we get the new furniture, you'll still find us stretched out on the floor watching the movie of the week.

What are some of your favorite rituals or traditions with your family?