New Traditions

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving. All of our children, their spouses, fiancé’s and our grand gifts were in attendance at Camp. Way too much food, a great deal of laughter, a lot of football, a bit of hunting and fishing for the guys, a bit of shopping for the girls and the antics of a two and a four year-old made for a boisterous good time. There was a little nostalgia for holidays past. This was my first holiday away from my parents – ever. I am so fortunate to still have both of my parents; it really was quite difficult for me to miss sharing even one special occasion with them.

Also, our son-in-law-to-be was celebrating without his family for the first time. I am sure it was hard for him, even though he was gentleman enough not to let me see it. All of us understand with our minds that the passing of time brings with it necessary changes to long-held traditions. But our hearts stage a grand rebellion and we want to cling to what is familiar and what has always made us happy. Change needs to sneak up on you, and catch you by surprise so that you are suddenly flooded with the realization that the change has already happened, and that you are so grateful that it was just fine after all. 

Best new tradition:  Everybody went to the Christmas tree farm and chose a NC mountain-grown tree to take back to Eastern NC for Christmas. Santa was definitely on-site to insure that all wishes went straight into his ear and therefore his memory. After all, Santa forgets nothing. 

Next best new tradition:  The arrival of the Elf on the Shelf named (by the grand gifts) Fred. The children found Fred in various dioramas throughout the house each morning after much planning, staging and giggling by the resident elves. The idea being that Fred flew to the North Pole to update Santa on everyone’s behavior and then flew home to have an adventure of his own each night. He had a date with Tinkerbell. He wore pink pajamas and had a sleepover with a baby doll. He ate popcorn while hanging upside down in the popper. He got stuck in a birdhouse. He even went fishing in the toilet tank.

   

We also got the giggles sending personalized video messages from Santa to each other. Highly recommended website for the entertainment of all elves and the amazement of all young children:  Portable North Pole (portablenorthpole.tv).  Fill in the blanks and Santa will send your child (or grown-up friend or significant other) an email directed very specifically to them. 

Did anybody else start a new tradition this Thanksgiving?