I've mentioned the tremendous influence Noel Piper's book Treasuring God in Our Traditions has had on my parenting. She truly shifted my paradigm where I am constantly looking for and asking myself how I can use this event, this holiday to keep my children's eyes gazing toward Christ for "all things were created by Him and for Him." What traditions can I intentionally create for our family that will consistently stir their affections toward the Creator?
One special event that comes every year multiple times is each family member's birthday. And we LOVE birthdays around here!
"Thinking of birthdays raises an important question. Some of our most significant events honor particular people. At those times, how do we demonstrate that God is at the heart of every celebration?" - Noel Piper
My hope is to create special, fun birthday memories, but make sure each child realizes his birthday is a celebration of thanks to God for the gift of his life.
We recently celebrated our second born turning SIX! Here are some of our birthday traditions that we pray will remind our children on their birthdays that we rejoice, we party, we bow our heads as our hearts overflow with gratitude because of God's goodness, that He gave them life and chose to put them in our family. These traditions also at the same time help me in preserving special memories for each child that they may look back upon God's faithfulness in their lives.
First Year Video
This is probably their absolute favorite tradition. I make a video of highlights from hospital birth to first birthday party and all the milestones in between. Each boy's little face radiates as we all snuggle up to watch God's journey for him begin as he becomes part of the Vaughan family. Let me offer a quick bit of encouragement. I've had to look myself in the eye and decide what is true about how I best operate and then base my goals around those truths. When I think about what is true of me... scrapbooking is not my thing. I still have a plastic bin full of all kinds of cool scrapbook materials and lots of wedding pictures. Just the thought of opening it begins to drain the energy from me. On the other hand, while I'm no professional, I'm not half bad at making videos, and I actually enjoy it, mostly. If technology isn't your thing, maybe you have energy to learn. That was me seven years ago. Maybe the thought of sitting through a MAC workshop makes your stomach turn. Every woman is unique, and embracing how God has wired me has helped me to think outside the box in my endeavor toward being the chief memory maker and keeper of our home.
Luke's video is 20 minutes, and in my young mother exuberance I thought how could anyone not love all this cute action! By the time number three came along I realized and fully understood that NOBODY but mom, dad, and brothers enjoy a home video of that length. So for the other boys I did major editing to their original first year videos to share with extended family and friends. So my example here is from number four's "first year video."
Birthday Journal
Each boy has a monogrammed journal in which Kennon and I write a special birthday letter each year. My original plan was to write down all the funny things they said and did, but I quickly realized a more realistic goal was each birthday. Sometimes I do think to add an entry here and there throughout the year, but the goal is each birthday. The content of the letter is to share with them all the ways we've seen God work in their lives that year. We write about what makes them them: hard things overcome, momentous moments, sibling relationships, favorites, and any funny things they've said or done that we can remember. Then we write our prayer for them for the upcoming year. The journals are small, black, and simple; my hope is one day it will be a worn and well read treasure that reminds them of God's constant hand in their lives and that specific things have been prayed over them all their lives.
Day-You-Were-Born Birthday Keepsakes
Birthday keepsakes are personalized birth announcement prints that include the child's name, meaning, birth date, birth information and a lot of fun facts about that very special day. You can get this made at any time. We read this on their birthday to remind them of why we chose their name, it's meaning, the details of when and where they were born, and what was going on in the world ("From one man he made every nation of men, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them and the exact places where they should live" Acts 17:26).
Birthday Book
The birthday book is something new I made this year. As I mentioned, I'm not much of a scrapbooker, but I feel strongly about documenting memories for the kids because memories matter, for good or bad. Edith Schaeffer in her book What is a Family? talks about the importance of building a museum of memories. Again, I think that can look very different in each family depending on the way God has wired us and our unique gift/skill set. The "Birthday Book" could not be more simple, but it's a sure way for me to keep some special photos from getting lost in the iCloud and to chart growth and personality through a sort of photo journal. I took a binder, photo insert pages, and big tab dividers. The dividers separate each birthday, and there are 1-3 photo pages filled with pictures from that year's birthday. It's fun to look back over the cake themes they chose, see the friends they invited, the type of party they wanted...personality comes out! I also include page protectors to insert special birthday cards/notes to keep. Just like Kennon and I write a special note in the journal, each sibling makes a card with a special note he writes or I write as the little guys dictate. The question presented is what they love about how God made their brother.
My big six year old!
No comments:
Post a Comment