Traditions are meant to be kept, right?  I mean even if they aren’t working out for your family and the stage of life you are in, they are traditions and therefore like the Ten Commandments written on stone tablets, you have to keep them, right?  Wrong!  Change is good.  While I have learned to embrace that philosophy over these last 6 years, I am not going to lie, it scared me to death at one time.  Even if something is uncomfortable and even unhealthy, many times, we hold onto it.  Why?  Because the unknown is frightening.  With the uncomfortable and unhealthy we at least know what to expect and therefore don’t have any disappointments or unmet expectations.  Wow, that got deep and emotional fast didn’t it?  Let’s back up and talk about what this post was supposed to be about…traditions.  As changes occur in our lives, it is only natural that traditions change as well.  And maybe we have been guilty of trying to make our family traditions resemble something we have seen on Pinterest or Instagram, even though it isn’t a good fit for the people living under our roof.  Confession time…that’s what I have done with Halloween in the past.  I mean what is the perfect Halloween meal???   Chili of course!!  With chips and cheese and sour cream in rugged crockery with cornbread and crackers…or at least that was what I saw it as and therefore was determined to make this tradition fit my little family.  One problem, not one person in my family likes chili…including me.  I have finally accepted this is not my family’s ideal Halloween night meal and have come up with the following game plan:

On the menu tonight is mummy hotdogs (aka crescent roll wrapped hotdogs), dip and chips, apples and caramel dip, and sugar cookies dyed orange (like pumpkins…get it??!!). And after a big night of trick or treating popcorn and The Great Pumpkin.  Nothing Pinterest worthy about this new tradition but I have a feeling it will be a hit with my crew, and that is what traditions are all about!!  So, the moral of this story is to use Pinterest and Instagram to inspire you to try new ideas, but let the people you love have the final say on the traditions you start and then be open to changing them as needed.  Find things that fit your stage of life and celebrate them.  And it is ok to create traditions that are just for you.  I change our mantle with the different seasons and holidays…now my kids think this is silly, but I love this tradition and plan on keeping it up no matter how silly they think it is!!