This year traditions and family memories mean just a bit more to me than usual. My kids are growing up and moving (emotionally, if not physically) further away, older members of the family are becoming elderly (as are we all!), and the babies aren’t babies any more. All a desired, natural progression of life.
These changes make things like family times all the more cherished. I’ve recently become conscious of the fact that each time I see my 83 year old MIL that it might be the last, as her health is failing. Each time I see my one year old grandson I’m impressed by how much he has grown both mentally and physically. Just over this last summer I have seen my fourteen year old son turn from a child to a young man. And I am reminded that the memories we are making as a family right now are ones I’ll probably look back on the most in the coming years. So I’m making an effort to make them some of the best!
This year we started what we hope will be the first of years of a family tradition. Yes, it’s never too late to start one! Last month my husband and I rented a modest house near the Atlantic Ocean for 2 weeks. Over the course of that time period different family members such as my nephew, his wife and three girls, my best friend, my MIL and SIL, and my oldest son and his family, all came to share the time with my husband, my youngest son and myself. Some visits overlapped and some missed each other, but most importantly we all had a great time.
There were times before we tried this that we worried it would be too much and we might not blend well in a confined area for days on end but we filled the days with sun, surf, shopping, sightseeing, good food and lots and lots of family time together. It was a huge success, so much so that we can home and began searching for a vacation place for next year. Plus my brother and his wife want to join us on the next vacation. By the time everyone splits the cost of the vacation, it’s more reasonable than a boring, on your own vacation!
It’s never too late to start making great family memories or to start a fabulous tradition. All you have to do is invite them and they will come! *g*
4 comments:
Especially if it is a place near the beach! Family is important and I believe there are events in our lives that bring that more to the forefront of our minds. My maternal aunt just turned 103! If I'm doing as well as she is, I'd love to make it to that age. As I was hugging her one last time before leaving for the airport, I did wonder if that would be the last time. We're a thousand miles apart so can't just drop by on a whim.
A tradition I started with my two surviving maternal aunts (93 and 103) is to write them a letter once a month. I fill it with newsy bits and pieces about our lives in Oregon. To my surprise, when I was visiting a few weeks ago, I was told my letters are being saved.
Can you see a great, great relative in the future on Antiques Roadshow with a shoe box full of my letters and copies of my autographed books? I can - so I'd better stop writing to you, Laura, and get back to my WIP.
Whether camping, renting a place at the beach, or enjoying the sights at an amusement park, we grow closer with those we love when we spend fun times together. You are right, Laura: these are the memories you'll look back on with pleasure the rest of your life.
We're hoping to rent a place at the beach someday, too. Sounds like an amazing vacation!
Sounds like fun! We did that one year only it was for a wedding. All our kids and their families and my brother and his family shared the cost of a house on the beach and had a wonderful time. The kids talk about doing it again.
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