Good Stuff Forever & What I Know For Sure

I am a believer in the good in the world and the good in all of us.  I am a believer in simple joys and the power of family traditions.  

When I was a kid, my mother was very good at making moments and holidays and milestones special.  She made memories.  She made us feel loved and safe and important.  After my family sort of fell apart completely and my mother began battling mental illness and addiction, it was the memories and traditions that I clung to.  

As a kid, a few simple ceremonies made life a little more magical. Making my granny's bread sticks every holiday was just something we did, no matter what. The traditions, the ceremonies, the bread sticks...they mattered.  When families fall apart or the world seems uncertain and angry and upsetting, sweet family traditions make most of us feel more loved and safe and sort of like some things are going to be okay.   

When my mom moved away when I was in high school she sent me a box of ornaments from my childhood.  She said it was so I could carry on traditions of my own.  I think my mom meant well, but it just seemed like an ending to me instead of a beginning.  I mean I was only 17, I didn't really want to make my own traditions just yet.  

Years later though, when I became a mother, I jumped into tradition and memory making with my whole heart and soul.  I wanted to recreate the good parts of my childhood and make new even better memories for my kids.  

Now I have a lot of my own family traditions.  We do the "Friday Pump" (pumping your hand up in the air and chanting Friday because we are pumped about the weekend, duh) every Friday morning before the kids go to school which is based on something a teacher did with our class every Friday back in my middle school.  We go to the pumpkin patch before Halloween.  We go on road trips in the summer.  We have an Elf Night to kick off the Christmas season.  And a million more little and big ceremonies, dance parties, special foods and traditions.

We started doing Elf Night last year.  It involves a ton of paper snowflakes, waffles and marshmallows for dinner, an elf-naming ceremony and watching the movie Elf together.  
It is one of my favorite nights of the year. 
And I am pretty damn proud of my 3-D snowflake.

That's Keith Babu our elf
(he is a wrestling action figure in the off-season).

Over the years some things change and I know as the kids get older it will keep changing.  But my dream is to have my big kids come home from college over the holiday break and ask to do the Elf Night.  I want them to feel loved, safe and important for always.  Maybe it sounds naive, but I know for sure that I don't want our family traditions and the good stuff to stop, ever.

Here's what else I know for sure this week:

• I married into an amazing family that so gets the whole tradition thing.  In fact they may be the best I've ever seen at all of it.  I made a video about them a few years ago.  It is about the Kimball Family Christmas party that has been going on for years and years and years.

Kimball Christmas Party from Jumping With My Fingers Crossed on Vimeo.

(It's a pretty long video and I watch parts now and I am critical of some of my edits and transitions, but overall am pretty proud of it because it reflects the love and awesomeness of this family.Even if you watch just the first minute or so, you'll get how sweet they are.)

Tim watched the video with the boys the other night.  That's one of the reasons I made the it, so that they can understand a little better how cool their family is.

• Cutting down the Christmas tree is a newer tradition of ours and we love it, even if it doesn't go perfectly.  Check out all of our tomfoolery that went on this year.

(Cick here to watch the video.)

• JT loves Christmas.  When I was a kid I used to put the Christmas tree skirt on and twirl and twirl while everyone else decorated the tree.  JT wore it as a cape last weekend and flew around while we decorated.  Tradition!!!!!

What are your traditions?  What do YOU know for sure this week?  Share it here in the comments or on my Facebook page.

Elf Magic, What I Know For Sure & #iPPP

"Did you know Keith's brother has Celiac too?," JT asked me when I woke up one morning this past week. "He told me so in his note to me," he added smiling, maybe feeling a little less alone.

Keith has a brother, Todd.  Todd has Celiac disease.  This makes JT very happy because he has it too.  Keith is our elf, a former WWE wrestling action figure.  Todd doesn't live here.  Keith wrote a letter to JT, replying to a letter JT wrote to Keith.

Keith holding his letter for JT.

I love that the kids leave notes/letters and leave them for Keith. They leave suggestions about where to hide.  They ask questions.  They have a dialogue with him.  And Tim, the power behind the elf magic, uses his power for good. Being playful, helpful, inclusive. 

I used to feel bad about lying to the kids about Santa Claus.  It still sort of bothers me.  When Peyton found out that Santa wasn't real, he was pissed.  He couldn't believe we had lied to him for so many years.  But when I told him Santa was inspired by a real-life guy and adds to the magic of Christmas and being a little kid, he got less angry.  And when I told him he could help and be a part of the magic making, he got sort of into it.

He hasn't asked about the elf, he plays his part in keeping the magic alive for the little kids.  For some reason, I don't feel as bad about lying about Keith.  I sort of can't believe that they believe.  But I sort of also just kind of love it.

Keith and the power of the elf connection rule in our house and the magic of all of it is some kind of wonderful, I know that for sure this week.


Here's what else I know for sure (right now):

• Listen To Your Mother (LTYM) Metro Detroit is collaborating with Alternatives For Girls. And I couldn't be more proud and excited about it.  Click here to read more about our LTYM collaboration.

• I could be or find the next Eminem.  Yeah, that's right.  While searching for a LTYM venue, I got to stand in the spot where Eminem got his start and where the movie 8 Mile was filmed.  When I came home and told the kids, they acted like I told them I went to Target.  They looked annoyed that I was speaking.  They'll be sorry when I'm famous.

That's not Eminem, that's some random guy outside the famous spot.

• Pantene's ad from the Philippines is a powerful look at stereotypes and labels.  It's gone viral and I love it so much.  Watch it.

• Playdates are important for kids and grown ups. And um, isn't my pal Liane's playroom just the cutest?

• I am not loving the new season of Parenthood. Where are the sibling breakfasts? Where's the humor?  Where is Hattie?  And why is Christina ignoring Max and Nora? And why don't they have a Christmas episode? Ugh. I miss the old days.  I want to love one of my favorite shows, but I just don't right now.

• Trouble figuring out the difference between empathy and sympathy? Check out this beautiful, simple animation of a Brene Brown talk.

• Christmas caroling is really sweet.  Lucy's school choir went last night and sure it was only about 8 degrees, but it was cute and festive.  I had to reign in my enthusiasm a bit (Lucy didn't want me to do jazz hands, what?), but it definitely put me in a holiday mood.

What do you know for sure (this week)?  C'mon, we're friends, share what you know. 

Leave a comment here or on my Facebook page or on Twitter.

Please come play with me on Instagram @jumpingwithmyfingerscrossed. 

I'm linking up today with my friends Greta from  Gfunkified.com and Robin from FarewellStranger.com for the #iPPP link up.  They host a link up where they encourage people to share "your funny, your yummy, your heartfelt, your favorite photos of the week" from our phones. 

Elfing & Holiday Rules

I know there are lots of opinions about the old Elf on the Shelf.    Some people get sort of waaaaay too into it.  Some people think those people are dumb.  Some people get really angry about elfing.  

It seems that we either do too much or not enough, not just with the elf but with anything holiday-ish.  Everybody feels really strongly about what we all should be doing and saying during the holidays. I mean the outrage over stores being open on Thanksgiving was kind of nuts to me.  And saying Merry Christmas instead of Happy Holidays, don't get those folks started.  

I have strong feelings about things.  I feel very strongly that if it brings joy to your family and doesn't hurt anyone, do it.  If you listen to Christmas music in October, shop on Thanksgiving and meticulously plan the antics of the Elf on the Shelf every damn day in December and it doesn't make you mean and overstressed and hateful, do it.  It's not my jam, but that's cool.

Some people may be appalled that we knighted? anointed? nominated? well, anyway, we picked an old toy to be our Elf on the Shelf.  Last year, a random WWE wrestling action figure became our elf Keith Babu.  The kids got totally into it.  It was fun, funny and brought our family joy.

So we decided to do it again this year...

We shortened Keith's name to K.B. this year. Lucy made his outfit.  K.B. is wearing an old sock and a belt made of twine.

Last night, we had an elf evening.  There was a theme dinner based on the movie Elf.  

Lots of syrup, lots of sugar.  Don't worry I made them a veggie tray for their after school snack.

JT trying to be just like Buddy. 

Syrup in a fancy gravy boat thing? Yeah we got that.

After everyone was hyped up with a good sugar buzz, we performed our elf magic/naming ceremony. 

It's part Survivor elimination ceremony, part fish tank initiation in Nemo and part crazy loud kids and candles.  It's all goofy and fun and we love it.

I guess it's part National Honors Society too.  Doesn't it look like Tim is in one of those?  Or at least that's what I picture it like anyway, never made it to one. Waaaaa.

Even the stuffed animals get in on the ceremony.

Yeah this happened.(Lucy is on the drum in the background.)




Then we watched the movie Elf together.  

It was a perfect night, for us.  It's not everyone's jam, and that's cool.

Do what works for you and enjoy the holidays.  


I linked up with Mama Kat for my thoughts on the chaos of Christmas.  Check it out.

What about you guys?  What's your jam?  Do you elf?  What's your favorite Christmas tradition?