new celebrations

I have written a few posts about how my girls have a lot of difficulty with holidays, primarily Christmas and Thanksgiving. I think it is safe to say that they may never truly enjoy that entire holiday season. After their first year living with us, I began thinking about how they had no connection or experience with American Chinese/Cantonese foods. They did not even have any knowledge of Chinese culture. That first year we took them to a Chinese garden and had proper tea service. We took them to various Asian markets and showed them what was on offer. My spouse and I always partook in the food aspects of Chinese/Lunar New Year. We went to the shops and picked out various savory and sweet foods. We made sure to go to our local restaurants and have a good time. We went to cultural celebrations in the city and made purchases at the vendors. We enjoy the celebration.

After some thought, and after finding some very delightful children’s books on the subject, I introduced the girls to the Lunar New Year Celebration and Chinese culture. They were fascinated as they had no prior knowledge about any of it. They loved learning the story of the zodiac and hearing the tales of children celebrating their culture. We then had a new holiday to celebrate during our second year together and we have celebrated it ever since!

Our typical celebration consists of getting a to-go order from our favorite local family restaurant. We pick up treats and sides from our favorite Asian market. I love to get a large chunk of BBQ pork from their meat/deli department (it is so tender and not at all dry). We get traditional sweets and some imported candies and drinks. We get a couple small gifts for the girls and give them some cash in a red envelope. We have a big family day of games and movies. We may not celebrate on the actual day of the Lunar New Year, but we make a point to have a whole day to just enjoy the holiday.

Over the years, I pick up more decorations for the house and the girls get so excited watching our tradition grow. Lego has even made several sets for Lunar New Year every year for the past few years. We try and pick up a couple of those to add to our holiday decor. If you have heard of a Christmas Village, we have a Lunar New Year village made from Lego. It includes a minifigure parade!

We went from just enjoying the cultural festivities to really making the Lunar New Year a part of our family. The girls get so excited and really look forward to it each year. There are no bad memories associated with it, so it is a time to be happy and look forward to the new year. It was such a simple thing for us to do and it has really meant a lot to everyone in the family. We have a little holiday season for ourselves that we can all talk about!

Bottomline: If traditions are hard, make a new one! There are holidays, cultures, and celebrations all around the world. Think about which ones you may already partake in and figure out how to make it a family affair!