Holiday

With the hustle and bustle of travelers lining the interstate, here comes the lineup of holiday gatherings with a BANG! Last Christmas, my crew traveled to EIGHT different family gatherings in two days. Please don't get me wrong, I realize it is a blessing to have so many loved ones eager to see us and our kiddo. I also understand many people would be thankful for just ONE home-cooked meal with their families. With that being said, the lineup of gatherings one after the other on Christmas Eve and Christmas Day can be exhausting for the little one (okay who am I kidding, it's exhausting for us big ones too)! It's hard to maneuver the territory of holiday family time. Feelings...

My little girls LOVE tea parties. They hold pretend tea parties a few times a week. They love them so much, that they have possed with their tea set in at least two birthday photoshoots. Since my oldest is 4.5 years old and my youngest is about to be 3 years old, I thought it would be so much fun to take them to one of those fancy holiday tea parties at the beautifully decorated hotels. I couldn’t wait to dress them in their adorable matching Christmas outfits with their knee-high socks and gold Mary-Janes. They would be the picture of perfection sipping their tea or hot chocolate, their eyes smiling with delight. However, upon further investigation, it just wasn’t...

Growing up, my family didn’t necessarily have traditions for the holidays. We always woke up to my mom cooking Christmas dinner while we opened up Christmas gifts or we always went to my grandmother's house to celebrate with family. However, we didn't have what some people consider holiday traditions like Elf on the Shelf, Chinese food the night before Thanksgiving, reading A Cajun Christmas book every year, going around the table to say what you are thankful for, making homemade ornaments every Christmas or buying certain types of ornaments every year. My husband is an only child and comes from a smaller family while I come from a mother who is one of ten, so lots of aunts and...

I don’t toss around the term “regret” often, but if I could press "Reset" on our parenting, I’d reconsider Santa Claus. At the very least we’d start smaller, maybe just the three gifts. We’d dial back how much we committed to the myth. At best, we wouldn’t have done Santa at all. It wasn’t until after we’d begun the Santa myth with our oldest child that I even considered the option. I had grown up in a very Santa-friendly home; everyone I knew had grown up believing in Santa (until they didn’t). I guess I never thought that avoiding it was an option. As I saw others raising children, I realized how many were opting out. The more I considered...

November is the month in which most American families celebrate the Thanksgiving holiday. A holiday full of warmth, family, friends, and an abundance of food. It’s supposed to have that proverbial table that’s long enough to seat everyone and make them feel invited. Dishes are passed around, willingly shared, as everyone lists the reasons for which they are grateful. A prayer is said to the heavens above and everyone eats until they are full. Sometimes, afterward, there is a gathering of football fans in front of the television set. In a perfect world, Uncle Roger doesn’t mention that the women who’ve cooked all day should also do the dishes and Aunt Edna squeezes you into a hug, listing some positive...