Holiday Traditions

I was obsessed with tradition as a kid--even if we did it only last year, we have to do it this year, because it's tradition! As an adult, I've been through so many moves and big life changes that I am much less rigid now (thank goodness) and my obsession has dwindled. But with a future family in mind, we think that traditions are a fantastic way to bring a family together--and if our hypothetical children are in any way like I was as a child, family traditions will be a necessity. And the holidays are a great place to start. Here are some traditions that I would love to be a part of our family, starting with a few that my DH and I have already begun:

Day-After-Thankgiving Christmas Tree Day

(I know, quite original.) We've now done this for four years running. And yes, if you're counting, that's as long as DH and I have been together. I hope that one day we'll actually live next to Nature, then we'll be able to make a day of it by hiking out in the snowy woods and cutting a tree ourselves. Mmmm, smell of fresh pine! (Artificial trees be...darned.) Here is our little apartment Christmas tree:

This Year's Ornament

(Also a very original tradition.) Even after doing this for only two years, it warms my heart to see our 2012 and 2013 ornaments. An ornament with a year on it is like a time capsule--it might bring back a special memory, and it just reminds you that you were alive and happy that year. We got ours from the kiosk at the mall--not the prettiest things, but this place has such a great variety that you can easily find one that represents something significant.

Nativity Scene

DH and I lament that the days of Christmas pageants in public schools are long past, but that's no reason not to teach our hypothetical children the real reason we celebrate Christmas. When I moved away from home, my mother sent me with a perfect little nativity scene, which I love to put up every year. Wouldn't it be lovely to take a little time on Christmas Decorating Day to read the story of the first Christmas and set out the manger scene? Light some candles, honor the birth of the man who died to save the world. That's worth celebrating. My nativity scene (I should have replaced those books with all my Christmas books, but...eah):

Adopt a Family

Most people you know are probably happy and joyous during the holiday season and ready to spend gobs of money on Christmas decorations, treats, and presents. It's easy to forget that many people you don't know dread the holidays, knowing that it's hard enough to put food on the table, much less get presents for all the kids. We want to teach our hypothetical kids that Christmas is not just a season to get, it's a season to give and show love even to people we don't know. This year, we're adopting a family through a local Catholic church, but there are tons of programs across the country (and world) that help you give back during the holidays. Here are some articles that have some suggestions: Charity Ideas That Make an Impact (older, but most links still work); Gifts that Make a Difference. 

Last Year in Pictures

I am so excited to start this tradition this year! For us, it will actually be an anniversary tradition, beginning with our first year of marriage. But wouldn't it be fun for a family to gather together all the pictures from the past year and make a little photo album? The days of developing film, boxes of photos, and slide-in photo albums are past (so sad, but I guess I have to be all right with it). These days, all-in-one photo books are the thing. I use Shutterfly, because they always have great deals and it's really fun to put together (it actually turns out like a scrapbook). It really doesn't matter how you do it--the important thing is you're pulling together all the memories of the year and producing a printed copy of them, so that those wonderful pictures aren't languishing year after year on a hard drive somewhere. And imagine what fun it will be to look through them all ten, twenty years from now!

Caroling Party

Okay, I admit this one is going to be on the back burner for a few years. Hosting a party in a tiny apartment in a questionable neighborhood for our two friends is not quite ideal. But one day, when we have a house, when we have a yard and live in a cute little neighborhood somewhere, this tradition is gonna be great! When I think of all the Christmas parties I've been to, the caroling party always floats to the top of my memory. What's not to love? Walking around in the frosty air, warbling holiday tunes, warming ourselves afterward with some delicious holiday treats and spiced cider and rousing party games. I can just see it all now...ahhh, what holiday cheer!

Do you participate in any of these holiday traditions? What other Christmas traditions are important to you?


P.S. I finished the dog sweater! Ended up taking only two skeins of green, so I ended up returning one, and final product cost $16 and took a little over a week...but you could easily use the cheap yarn and spend as low as $6. Look how cute he is!

Progress...and Knitting for Cute

In case you were wondering, the knitting of the dog sweater is going marvelously. The pretty pattern is actually way easy for how complicated and nice it looks--you're just reading the diagram and repeating it over and over. The hard part is all the  increasing and decreasing and slipping off and on for the armholes, which I just finished. Here is a picture of what I've got so far.

And so far I've tried it on Winston and he seems to like it...but he has tried to eat the yarn on several occasions. In one such instance my noble DH had to rescue the white yarn from hanging off the balcony, which is where Winston takes things he doesn't want us to know he's chewing. Sometimes we call him Sir Chews-a-lot.

What I don't know is how I'm going to tear myself away to work on my papers this weekend--knitting is so addicting! When I'm all done with my master's (a.k.a. family time, if ya know what I mean), I'm going to knit all kinds of stuff. The options are endless! I looked around and found some adorable tiny clothes (all free patterns)--here are my favorites:

Sweater Dress (Petite Purls)

Pretty Blanket (Red Heart)

Little Cardigan (AllFreeKnitting.com)

Baby Booties (Originally from the blog Blissfully Domestic)

Minion Hat (Ravelry)

(A little girl at my work has one of these--so funny!)

Which one should I go for first? Do you just want to smooch that sweater dress baby's little cheeks like I do? Do you have any other fabulous free pint-sized knitting patterns?

Parenting Creed

My hypothetical future family is going to freaking rock. I'm serious, I've got it all planned out! I had an idyllic childhood, and I want the same for my kids. So here's my Parenting Creed to-date:

Things my parents made sure I experienced as a child, which I shall pass on to my hypothetical children:

• Work Ethic: Chores. Everyone's gotta earn their keep! I like this list from another blog. (We're still trying to figure out what Winston's role is in this family--so far all we've come up with is get him a doggie backpack and make him carry stuff when we go places.)
• Healthy Body: Milk. My hypothetical children will drink milk every day, end of discussion. I never got a cavity until I was 20 and had no one to make me drink milk! Also, Sports. It's gonna be wrestling and track (Mike) versus soccer and baseball (me). I guess the kids will have to decide. [ahem, soccer and baseball, ahem]
• Healthy Mind: Okay, this one is going to be easy. Sorry, but with a mom and dad who are teachers--one with a doctorate and the other with a master's by then--plus a grandma and aunt who are also teachers, they really stand no chance of not being Nerds. I'm just going to leave it at that.
• Responsibility: Pets. Of course we'll have a dog already, but I'm planning on using my hypothetical children's need to learn responsibility as leverage to convince my DH to let us get a cat. Mwahaha. Shhh, don't give away the plan.
• Fun: Board Games. When I was a kid we had a whole closet full of board games. How awesome were we? [smug, nerdy smirk] I love me some Bananagrams and puzzles! Another fun activity our hypothetical children will definitely learn is how to Ski and/or Snowboard. It's one of the things we both love, so naturally our children will carry the same snow-sport genes. Besides, little kids skiing and snowboarding is too adorable!
• Music: I refuse to listen to cheesy music. Ergo, our children will be brought up on Rock and Jazz--none of this kid pop boppy crap. You're never too young for a little 3 Doors Down. Okay, fine, I suppose certain children's music will make it through the embargo, but only quality stuff, like Wee Sing and Raffi. And I suppose--I say this with much hesitation--Disney music. New stuff like Frozen not so much, but by golly, my hypothetical children will know all the words to "A Whole New World!" (But OMG, I love this parody of Frozen music!)

What would you add to this list? Parents, what philosophies did you have before you were a mom or dad? How many of them came true? [eye twinkle]

Woof-wear

I don't think the temperature went above 41 degrees today. And so I have (logically) decided to knit a sweater. Never before attempted by me, it will be a feat of skill and endurance and, I daresay, craftiness.

Okay, I should add that it's going to be a doggie sweater. Don't laugh! Winston's a big furball (as my carpet, couch cushions, and every article of black clothing I own will attest to), but it's freaking cold even for him. Though, judging from how much he likes shoving his face in the snow and coming up looking like Santa Paws, you'd think he was born in the Arctic along with Balto.

So I narrowed it down to this Norwegian-esque pattern. (I like Scandinavian-ness. And no, not because of Frozen.)

It's gonna look way better on my dog, cause my dog's way cuter. [prideful smirk]

And here are my "before" pictures...

 Le Wool.

Le Pooch.

(Heh heh, I know I'm a nerd. But come on, I'm trying to be DIY pro here. DIY people always have before and after pictures!)

Whenever I see something I like at the store that's knit, I always say, "I'm not gonna buy that--I can make one!" [haughty toss of hair] I always get the idea that I'd save so much money by DIY-ing it, too...but I forget to take into account that stuff costs money, even when it's not pre-made. I got Paton's Classic Wool because it was the only all-wool option I could find at Jo-Ann's. I should have gone for cheaper acrylic, but doesn't "wool" have such a nice, wintery ring to it? With the added bonus that it won't be itchy because...I'm not the one who has to wear it! Anyway, I had the needles already, so I ended up spending just over $20. Which is about how much a doggie sweater like this would cost at the store anyway. BUT, I can make it with love!


So, what do you think of my Norwegian pattern? Too Norwegian? If you're a knitter, would you attempt it? (This pattern has some new stuff for me, particularly the cool pattern-y designs I liked. Hopefully it won't end up a big tangled mess that we'll find later in Winston's stomach. Fingers crossed.)

...Oh, all right, I'll post a video of Winston being cute. Ladies and gentlemen, the Tail Dance.

Crooning

You know in movies how they hear a nice song and they always say, ever so softly, "I remember my mother used to sing that to me...ah, the memories, the sad sweet memories...boo hoo hoo!" Well, I've decided I'm going to be one of those moms! Because I want to have the power to turn my hypothetical children to mush at will. That would totally happen.

So I'm working on my "crooning" playlist. Here's what I have so far:

• Moon River (from Breakfast at Tiffany's)
• As Time Goes By (from Casablanca)
• Crazy (Patsy Cline)
• Someone to Watch Over Me (from the only solo I've ever sang in public...high school jazz concert, be glad you weren't there)
• Landslide (Fleetwood Mac, duh)
• Vienna (Billy Joel, huh-duh)
• God Bless the Child (Billie Holiday)
• La Vie en Rose (okay don't laugh, I'm not trying to be a copycat, but I loved the last season of How I Met Your Mother, and this song did it!)

Add to these, of course, the regular lullabies like the one from Mary Poppins (I'm pretty sure this is the album I listened to when I was a kid so long ago...#6!)

A Side Note: I tried singing to my 14-month-old nephew to put him to sleep, and all I got was sticky baby hand to the FACE. Literally, he kept putting his hand over my mouth. Burn.

What do you think of my choices? Do you have any you would add?