Conference Traditions

I've always thought that traditions are a really important part of any family and I tried really hard to instill some fun and meaningful traditions when the kids were young. As our girls are getting older, they are taking the lead to establish some of our traditions and I love that. Our General Conference traditions have evolved over the years and it's always fun for me to see what sticks and changes from year to year.

The girls started "word bowls" a few years ago and they are working hard to keep it alive. They attach words to bowls that they think they will hear frequently in the conference talks and each time the word is said, they eat whatever food is in that bowl. There are specific foods they plan on from year to year and a few days before conference, Meg made a shopping list for me...

pistachios, cucumbers, carrots, sweet tarts, Reese's, Fruit by the Foot, snap peas, Smarties, Rolos, pretzels, miniature Hershey bars, Cheez It's, and I added some milk on there so I wouldn't forget it.

{My heart feels heavy every time I see these phonic spellings because I know we are close to the end. Pretty soon, everything my baby girl writes will be spelled correctly and that makes me a tiny bit sad.}

I did my part by buying the items on the list, then my cute girls got busy on the bowls.

I've noticed that frequently spoken words like love, prayer and God get all the good candy. Those bowls empty out pretty quick.

The girls used to prepare these bowls for each session of conference, but I noticed that they didn't eat good lunches or dinners and they were a little cranky by the second session, so this year we reserved the bowls for the final Sunday session and we ate popcorn during the second session on Saturday. I think we may have sparked a new tradition.

In addition to the foods we eat while watching conference, the girls like to set up their own little stations in front of the TV. This year Brita helped Meg create her own little corner and instead of sitting on the couch, Brita and Leah opted to pull chairs in front of the couch. Jared was happy just lounging on the plain old couch though. I may or may not have heard snoring coming from that little corner of the room.

As for Buddy, he's just happy to be with the family...as long as he can rest.

Sometimes he disgusts me and he doesn't even care.

We may have started a new Conference-Sunday-Lunch menu as well. Instead of making our traditionally large Sunday dinner, we went light since the kids eat through the whole day anyway. We made our own pizzas and it was a hit. The girls always love to do that, but for some reason it seems like a lot of work to me on a regular weekday. I'm almost positive I can handle it a couple times a year during Conference though.

We started lunch a little late, so they ate their pizzas while listening to the beginning of the second session. Leah is always very diligent about making sure they don't miss out on any treats. I really like it when my kids show diligence in pretty much any area.

Meg went ahead and labeled her pizza so we would all know it was a ladybug. I love that little ladybug, and I think her pizza is pretty cute too.

I love huddling with our little family on General Conference weekend. I remember trying to get out of watching Conference as a kid, but our girls don't do that. I think they love huddling together too. I know it makes me feel secure and warm to have all of us tight there together for a little while. And Brita told me several times that she loves Conference. I love it too.

I'm looking forward to reading some of the talks that left an impression on me and thinking about things I want to change in my life. I feel inspired and when one Conference ends, I immediately start looking forward to the next one where I'll be all huddled up again with the people I love the most.