Why Create A Family Tradition?
Family traditions are really important. They are predictable. Predictability helps children feel safe and secure. They give everyone something to look forward to and strengthen the bond among family members. Traditions also provide lasting memories.
Our Family Tradition
We have a family tradition of Friday night being movie and pizza night. As a kid Friday was always pizza night, a tradition that I loved. I asked Nick if he would be OK with continuing that tradition when we were married and he was all for it. Sometimes we order from our favorite pizza place, but more often than not we just cook a couple of frozen pizzas. I love having pizza night on Friday night because it’s an easy and delicious way to end the work week.
As the kids got older we would sometimes let them have a treat. We would have pizza in the living room and watch a new movie, often Disney’s newest release. (See our post about Spirituality, Disney Style here for a list of some of the movies we like because of their messages.) At first this was just an occasional treat. Pretty soon we were doing it a few weeks in a row because we really wanted to watch the new movie again (and again). Eventually the family tradition of pizza and movie night in the living room evolved. And I’m so glad it did.
It’s almost like a family date night. We all get to eat a food we really enjoy. We take turns picking out the movie. When we get a new movie we always save it for Friday night. When we don’t have a new movie sometimes Nick and I decide what we’ll watch, other times we let the kids decide. It’s always a movie appropriate for all family members. When it’s over we usually have a few moments to talk about it before we begin the bedtime routines.
I really enjoy our tradition. It’s something the whole family looks forward to each week. Sometimes we have though provoking conversations based on the movie once it’s over. It’s also a good way to unwind and transition into the weekend.
What are some of the traditions you enjoy with your family?
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Sounds like a great family activity. I do something similar with my kids on Fridays too, and I look forward to it every week. Then Sunday’s are usually our family day and we have a traditional Senegalese meal, with community platter and all, and that’s my favorite.
Marie, your Sunday tradition sounds wonderful! I would really enjoy a day like that each week.
this is so crazy! this was my tradition when I was little with my mom every Friday night.
I love the tradition and hope my kids will look back on it with fond memories!
You will never regret doing this. You only have a short span in their life where Friday night is with family. Soon there will be sleep overs, football games, dances and dates. Cherish the moments.
Thank you for the reminder Julie! I do enjoy our weekly tradition.
I love this! I think this would be a fun tradition to do in the future, whenever I have kids. Granted, I can do something similar now with my nieces and nephews, though maybe once a month or something.
-Lauren
Lauren, it is a fun and relaxing way to end the week! I am sure your nieces and nephews would love it!
Aww! What a fun family tradition! My parents have “Pizza Saturdays”–not quite every week, but most of the time, and my husband and I sometimes join in. What was funny was I lived with my grandparents during college, and I discovered that they also had “Pizza Saturdays” as a tradition!
That is funny! I had pizza Fridays as a kid and added the movie night part for my own kids.
I have fond ‘pizza movie night’ memories – we used to all order pizza and watch TGIFriday! It was the thing *to do* in the 90s!
I love that! We take turns picking kid appropriate movies on Fridays, usually Disney movies.
My littles are too little for movies but I look forward to starting a tradition of weekly movie nights. I’m excited for an expected time to connect with kids at the end of each week. This is the perfect tradition to begin as soon as possible!
Shanna, it really is the perfect tradition. It is a relaxing way to end the week and share some of your favorite movies. When they get older you can have meaningful conversations about the movies too!