"You may ask, 'How did this tradition get started?' and I will tell you---I don't know!"

♫"Tradition, Tradition!"♪

;) Though I'm not quite as caught up in traditions (especially in that way) as this character, Tevye and I certainly have something in common. :) If you ask anybody in my family, who is the most die-hard traditionalist in our family, I'm sure they'd answer, "Sarah, of course!". ;) I do have to say that I enjoy our simple, but sweet memories of family traditions like:

Flying plastic bag kites in the fall,

Mom reading aloud classic books such as the Railway Children,

The way we celebrate birthdays,

Picking berries in the heat of the summer while getting eaten alive by bugs, but coming home with a full belly, a big smile, and a berry-covered face

Sitting on the sidewalk in the cool fall breeze, carving pumpkins,

and laying down in the "soft patch" of grass on the hill behind our yard. :)

And there are many more small, subtle "traditions" that go on in our family on a regular basis.:)

Do you any of you all have that "traditionalist" bone in your body? ;)

(After taking up an entire post on this subject, I know you must admit I do!)

~Sarah

"Jingle-Bell Time is a Swell Time..." :)

Hi guys! I'm sorry for lack of posting, but this Christmas season is super busy for us all, but especially Mama! And since I am the oldest girl, of course that makes me busy too! :) I have been trying to do a post with pictures for several days, but Blogger won't let me upload them! It shows me a little code that says "javascript (0)" or something, and anyhow, it doesn't work! :)

It has been a funny sort of Christmas season for us, and it took me *way* too long, but finally, I'm getting in the Christmas spirit! :) Wanna know some of the things that got me going? (Besides the knowledge that Jesus' birthday is soon, and hearing the whole stunning story again!)

• Hearing any Burl Ives, Dean Martin, Bing Crosby, (etc.) Christmas song. It's gotta be from back then to give me warm-fuzzies! ;)
• Watching "Eloise At Christmastime"
• Wrapping my presents and sticking them under the tree
• Being let in on a Christmas secret, and firmly believing it is the most serious thing that must be kept on pain of death, but devising all sorts of dangerous clues in the meantime! :)
• Doing Advent as a family
• reading "Shepherds Abiding" by Jan Karon
• working late to finish a present or two
  
• Sitting late at night and feeling my eyes grow droopy as I gaze at our Christmas tree (though I find this works best the years we use colored lights)
• Wearing red
• Seeing and eating one of Sarah's *adorable* gingerbread men
  
• dancing to "Jingle Bell Rock" and "All I Want For Christmas Is You" to make the younger kids shocked ;) (They actually crack up laughing at my antics, it's so not me! :)

So now there is only one thing missing to make my Gearing-Up-For-Christmas complete! :) And that would be going Christmas Shopping with Daniel!!!! That will fully put me over the edge into Christmas-dom! :) You might remember my Christmas-Shopping-With-Daniel post last year... :) I just re-read it, and it made me laugh! All of my shopping is done except Dad and Mama's gifts...I need to get thinking! But since they love anything we give them, that shouldn't be too hard! :)