Tradition Over Toys
By Allison Spence
How’s that motorized skateboard, still working? Do you still have all the pieces to the Shopkins set your kid was pining over for months? How about that American Girl doll with the hairbrush stuck in her plastic strands of hair?
Trust me I’m not judging, I am 100 percent guilty of purchasing these items or accessories for them! This year I finally decided toys are pure joy for a month – maybe two – and then discarded, lost, or broken. We decided instead of loading up on the gifts for Grafton and our 13 nieces and nephews (yes 13), we’d get creative.
For Grafton, we were handed down a kitchen set, so we bought a few new boxes of plastic food and called it a day. As for our nieces and nephews we made them some old school pennants with their names on them.
Our little family of three chose to spend the holidays making new traditions instead of spending hours shopping. Don’t get me wrong we spent a solid two days finding gifts for all of the adults.
One tradition we carried on from last year was seeing Santa and the Grinch, which was mostly for me and Garrett because Grafton was terrified. This year we also introduced the whole gingerbread house thing. Although Grafton shoveled the candy faster than we could put it on, we loved watching his eyes light up as those cookie walls went up. Nothing tests your parenting patience as much as watching your kid destroy your creation.
These are just a few we did as a family, but my favorite holiday moment this year was driving in circles around a nearby neighborhood screaming “LIGHTS” – just me and Grafton. The more lights on a house the louder our laughter and screams were.
There’s going to come a year when Grafton wants a dog or a scooter, Garrett, a leaf blower or a pressure washer. But for now, we are relishing in the fact that Grafton is not going to remember a single thing we buy him.
With the holidays coming to an end, I encourage you to go out and make a new tradition! Happy holidays and safe travels from our family to yours!
