This past Sunday night was the backdrop for one of the traditions our family has held on to now for almost 20 years. Every Valentine's Day in our family, the Brady dinning room becomes a restaurant. Kids dress up in fancy clothes and rummage through their things (and the laundry room & mom's messy kitchen drawer) scavenging for pennies. I set an excessively fancy table with all those dollar store seasonal decorations, (or fine china as they get older...) and then make a menu. The menu is simple. It's made up of all those foods your kids love best, that are easy to cook and can be produced quickly! Everything from bagel pizzas, to fancy beverage options, to creative Valentine desserts. We like to play up the descriptions of these menu items too. Everything is offered a-la-carte, and everything costs a penny. Kids can order anything they want, in ANY combination! A day or two before, I stock the pantry & freezer with all those quick cook foods. So now, what's going on in the kitchen typically is 2 -3 pots of boiling water, one frying pan, a hot oven and another hot toaster oven---all ready for orders! Over the years the older girls have helped create the menus, and even brought their friends in for the event...the boys just show up for the excessive amounts of food! The menu items have grown up with the kids as well, this year we had Shrimp Scampi on our menu, and Spicy Beef & Sausage Ravioli (fresh, pre-made from Stop n Shop) in a light (from a jar) Alfredo Sauce! Dan & I serve the kids together and have our own little fun time in the kitchen...
It's hard to say how traditions get started. Sometimes it's something you've treasured from you or your husbands' childhood that simply must be carried on. Sometimes though, its just a fun idea, or even a solution to a temporary problem that sticks and gets clamored for --for a few years in a row, and somewhere in there gets set in stone. Our Valentines tradition started for us because our early family, with MANY small children and not much of a budget, lived across the country from any extended family. It was hard to get out much at all those years, and it was a happy solution to celebrating love. It was easier, and fun, to just make a party at home. As the kids grew, and began to anticipate last years events, what we found was a legit tradition!
This year, Grace is 11, Rachel (14) had the flu, and Nate (17), had to work. I wondered if I was still in business...maybe the interest was gone? But from across the miles, away at college, Tim (23), Laura (21) and Anne(19) absolutely expected that Valentines' Restaurant was up & running! What I'm realizing is that traditions often become a comforting thought to kids who are away, they make them feel that "life" as they remember it is still happening at home. It feeds that sense of security, that home is still "there" for them if and when they come back for it. So, Rachel stayed in bed upstairs, and Grace invited a neighbor friend. I thought I'd share some pictures of this years' event.
This is great Donna! What a great way to make memories for your family (and their friends too.) It's good to know that these "traditions" that play an important role in our lives don't have to be complicated or extravagant. All we need is creativity! Thanks for sharing this special moment with us.
WOW! Brings back memories of cozy morning Cafe com leite in Brazil, a pretty table and warm fresh paozinho! ALSO some of those fancy dinners we did for our family dinners (because we felt it fun anf good to treat the family as we do guests)! As a result all but one of the beautiful glasses we had are gone but the memories are well worth the loss because of setting all those pretty tables through the years. I actually have kept that glass in my china cabinet!
This past Sunday night was the backdrop for one of the traditions our family has held on to now for almost 20 years. Every Valentine's Day in our family, the Brady dinning room becomes a restaurant. Kids dress up in fancy clothes and rummage through their things (and the laundry room & mom's messy kitchen drawer) scavenging for pennies. I set an excessively fancy table with all those dollar store seasonal decorations, (or fine china as they get older...) and then make a menu. The menu is simple. It's made up of all those foods your kids love best, that are easy to cook and can be produced quickly! Everything from bagel pizzas, to fancy beverage options, to creative Valentine desserts. We like to play up the descriptions of these menu items too. Everything is offered a-la-carte, and everything costs a penny. Kids can order anything they want, in ANY combination!
A day or two before, I stock the pantry & freezer with all those quick cook foods. So now, what's going on in the kitchen typically is 2 -3 pots of boiling water, one frying pan, a hot oven and another hot toaster oven---all ready for orders! Over the years the older girls have helped create the menus, and even brought their friends in for the event...the boys just show up for the excessive amounts of food! The menu items have grown up with the kids as well, this year we had Shrimp Scampi on our menu, and Spicy Beef & Sausage Ravioli (fresh, pre-made from Stop n Shop) in a light (from a jar) Alfredo Sauce! Dan & I serve the kids together and have our own little fun time in the kitchen...
It's hard to say how traditions get started. Sometimes it's something you've treasured from you or your husbands' childhood that simply must be carried on. Sometimes though, its just a fun idea, or even a solution to a temporary problem that sticks and gets clamored for --for a few years in a row, and somewhere in there gets set in stone. Our Valentines tradition started for us because our early family, with MANY small children and not much of a budget, lived across the country from any extended family. It was hard to get out much at all those years, and it was a happy solution to celebrating love. It was easier, and fun, to just make a party at home. As the kids grew, and began to anticipate last years events, what we found was a legit tradition!
This year, Grace is 11, Rachel (14) had the flu, and Nate (17), had to work. I wondered if I was still in business...maybe the interest was gone? But from across the miles, away at college, Tim (23), Laura (21) and Anne(19) absolutely expected that Valentines' Restaurant was up & running! What I'm realizing is that traditions often become a comforting thought to kids who are away, they make them feel that "life" as they remember it is still happening at home. It feeds that sense of security, that home is still "there" for them if and when they come back for it. So, Rachel stayed in bed upstairs, and Grace invited a neighbor friend. I thought I'd share some pictures of this years' event.
3 comments:
This is great Donna! What a great way to make memories for your family (and their friends too.) It's good to know that these "traditions" that play an important role in our lives don't have to be complicated or extravagant. All we need is creativity! Thanks for sharing this special moment with us.
Thanks for sharing! I love the idea of starting fun traditions when the kids are young... guess I should start some now!
WOW! Brings back memories of cozy morning Cafe com leite in Brazil, a pretty table and warm fresh paozinho! ALSO some of those fancy dinners we did for our family dinners (because we felt it fun anf good to treat the family as we do guests)! As a result all but one of the beautiful glasses we had are gone but the memories are well worth the loss because of setting all those pretty tables through the years. I actually have kept that glass in my china cabinet!
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