This post contains affiliate links. For more information, see my disclosures here.

Traditions are something that you are so glad you started when looking back in time, but also, something that is so easily regretted if you have never started one.

I don’t know about you, but I love traditions, and I love to make memories. My family loves to celebrate each one of our daughters’ birthdays with a party where our closest friends and family come together.

Related: How To Stay Focused On Your Kid During Their Birthday

As part of our kids’ birthday traditions, we gifted each girl a pearl which is to be added to their Add-A-Pearl necklace that will become a keepsake for them when they are older.

My husband and I also have the tradition of writing long, love letters to each girl on their birthday. This collection of letters will be bound together in a book and given to them when they are 18. You can learn more about these two traditions by clicking here).

These traditions that my husband and I have started since our kids were born are going to be forever cherished by our daughters, and for that reason we have committed to keeping these traditions going year after year.

Making A Memory

I often times think ahead as if I was 80 years old. What memories would I have? Would I remember the blouse I bought that was way over priced or the new refrigerator I purchased when I renovated my kitchen? I really can’t imagine myself being 80 and still being excited about my new refrigerator. That just sounds absolutely silly, doesn’t it?

But I know I will look back and think about all the memories I made every 4th of July spending the weekend away with my family celebrating at the small town parade! I will remember the birthday parties and holiday gatherings I had with my family and closest friends.

The relationships we have and the memories we make with those we love are really what we treasure the most in life. Not material things.

Related: The Ultimate Gift Guide For Little Girls

I know that time can pass by so quickly, and it is easy for a year to go by where memories can be forgotten.

That’s why I am so passionate about making family traditions.

I hope to encourage you by the end of this post to create at least one family tradition that you are so strongly passionate about that you will not let one year go by without doing it.

Just imagine yourself right now being 80 years old. Pretend to look back and think about what you would feel like if you kept that tradition from now until you were 80. How would that make you feel? How amazing would it be to say that you did that for the past 50 years?

Related: Daughter’s Favorite First Keepsake Gift and Traditions  

Now let’s really think about what tradition(s) you already have in your family that you want to keep forever. Is it realistically possible to keep this tradition alive for years to come? I hope so.

If you don’t have a family tradition, I want to encourage you today to think of one possibility. The goal is to make a memory – one that will last, one that you can proudly keep as an annual tradition for the rest of your life. Wow, that sounds amazing, doesn’t it?

I have some ideas for you to get your wheels turning.

15 Year Round Family Tradition Ideas

1. Lunch every Sunday together as a family after church

2. Once a year family reunion

3. Once a year family beach trip

4. Spring tea party with the girls

5. Visit the same special place together as a family every year

Related: Traveling to New York City with 4 Little Kids and Strollers

6. Family picnics the same date every year

7. Farm picking date every year (apples, strawberries, pumpkins, etc.)

8. Amusement park with the family every year

9. Fishing trip with the guys

10. 1st Day of School tradition (special breakfast or a special photo)

11. Go camping with the family every year, the same time of year

12. Ice skating together as a family on the day of the first snowfall

13. Go to a community event together every year 

14. Every year commit to helping a family in need

15. Participate in a church wide function by serving in some way

20 Holiday Tradition Ideas For The Family

1. Christmas celebration at the same house every year

2. Christmas Eve celebration at the same location every year

3. Cut down your own Christmas tree every Christmas and decorate it together

4. Making gingerbread houses together as a family

5. Seeing Christmas lights together as a family

6. Making the same traditional Christmas cookie recipe every Christmas

7. Participate in an Angel Tree or other ways of giving as a family during Christmas time

8. Read the Bible Luke 2 every Christmas eve together taking turns reading it

9. Thanksgiving family football game

10. Create a fun new fall themed craft or play a kid friendly game every Thanksgiving 

11. Do an act of service with the family during Thanksgiving time

12. Have Thanksgiving at the same location every year

13. Light up Chinese lanterns every New Year’s Eve together as a family and send them off

14. Celebrate every birthday together in a special way, maybe with a special dinner

15. Do the same tradition every year on Mother’s Day and Father’s Day

16. Attend all church services together as a family around the holidays (Easter, Christmas eve services)

17. Doing an Easter egg hunt every year with the little ones at the same house.

18. Make a Resurrection Garden the week leading up to Easter

19. Bake Resurrection Rolls every Easter

20. Have a family cook out every 4th of July and watch the fire works together

Is there something on this list that you are already doing? Maybe you see something that you think your family will enjoy and participate in every year. I absolutely love traditions, and I do most of these on the list. I would love to hear about some of your traditions that perhaps you started with your children or traditions that have been in your family for generations.

Comment below and share some of your favorite family traditions!

Keep Smiling,

Dr. Jena Bradley, DPT

This post contains affiliate links. For more information, see my disclosures here.

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