Valentine's Day and Family Traditions

It's no secret to those that know me that I L-O-V-E Valentine's Day! (I love pretty much every holiday.  Mainly because most holidays center around family, friends, and food...three of my favorite past times.)  Form me Valentine's Day isn't just about flowers and chocolate (although I enjoy both), but it's about taking a day to put down the "To Do list", focus on with your loved ones, and tell them how much they mean to you.  Really, who doesn't like feeling special and hearing your friends and family tell you how much they love you! I don't think anyone, especially kids, can hear it enough.

I was lucky to have amazing parents who somehow managed to carve out enough time between juggling three kids and full-time jobs to make every holiday special for my siblings and me. Through the years my family has developed a slew of holiday traditions that we still uphold.  Now that I have my own family I feel that it is important to make my son feel as loved as I did growing up and feel connected to his myriad of cultures (mainly Italian and Mexican with a bit of German and Irish thrown in) through holiday traditions.  I also want him to learn how to show love and compassion to others. While we try to do both of these things on a daily basis, holidays are great opportunities to put emphasis on them.  They also provide an opportunity to sit down and talk about various topics, customs, and traditions, what they signify, and why they are important.  For example, Dia de los Muertos (a holiday we celebrate in our family) is a great time to teach kids about death in a light-hearted manner and give them a way to remember loved ones who are know longer with us.  So this Valentine's Day I decided to take the day off of work and spend it with my little man.  We spent the day making heart-shaped pancakes, hanging out at the park playing baseball, making a special surprise desert for dad.  Then we spent the evening as a family making heart shaped pizza for a special Valentine's Day dinner.  It was the best Valentine's Day yet!!  I hope yours was equally as wonderful.