My Favorite Summer Tradition.... The Gift of a Day!

Hello Friends!  Happy Summer!!!

Woo-Wee! I have been a busy girl lately! Oh, you know... wrapping up the school year, shuttling the kiddos from sport camps to sport practices, trying to keep the house clean, the yard weeded, and the family fed!  Whew!  It's enough to make you think you don't have time to blog!  LOL   But I have missed y'all...and knew I needed to hop on here and share some of the things that have been rolling around in my "summer-mode-brain!" 

Now, if you’ve ever read my blog or followed me on Instagram (hollyehle) or Facebook (ehlekindergarten), you probably already know I’m a family tradition nut! 

I’m ALL about making memories and trying to be “intentional” as a parent. However, I’m human and as hard as I’ve tried, I just can’t manage to add hours to the day or extra days to the week…so I’ve had to be creative in the ways of creating family traditions.  I have to find ways to make a BIG impact with the limited amount of time I seem to have.  I think I’ve come up with quite a few pretty cool traditions that are “do-able” for parents with limited time, if I do say so myself!  Today, I'm sharing one of my favs!

One of my favorite summer traditions is what we call 

 

I mean, really…Fewer things sound more delightful than spending a day doing exactly what we want, right?!! To our family, “The Gift of a Day” tradition reminds us that sometimes we need to put our obligations and our work aside and just BE.  We need to spend time with our loved ones, in our favorite place doing our favorite things, completely relaxing and forgetting about the hustle and bustle of our daily lives. “The Gift of a Day” is about making the most of every moment and approaching all that you do with purpose and love.  It's about keeping the people and activities we value the most in the forefront of our minds so that we don't get distracted by all those things that aren't important.  It's about feeling the satisfaction of truly giving and appreciating life around us and not taking one single thing for granted.

I may not be able to be “SUPERMOM” every day of the year….but this tradition allows me to be just that for a least one day! LOL   And when you stop to think about it… If you consider how the events of a single day have changed the course of history… maybe, just maybe, giving your child a “Gift of a Day” may just change their lives forever too!  

So this is how it works in my family. During the first few weeks of summer, we have each family member complete their own "perfect day" card. (We currently just have our kiddos fill them out…but every few years “we” {mom& dad} have filled them out too!) We have each person write down all of their favorite things, the things that they would love to experience packed in one day!  (NOTE: This is NOT about going to fancy, expensive places or about buying things.  This is about doing the simple things each kid loves, like spending time with their best friends in their favorite places, picking their favorite home-made meals, etc.)  We then store each member’s card in his/her envelope on their specially assigned page in our “Gift of a Day” memory book.

This is what OUR little "Gift of a Day" keepsake book looks like.
(Keep in mind, we started this YEARS ago!  You can tell from the style! Hee! Hee!)
You can use any time of keepsake booklet or even just a storage box with cardstock cards!

 

Here is a peek at the inside.  The first pic shows a little description of the tradition and the next two pics are examples of the inside pages.  Note that the photos of my boys are glued onto actual envelopes that are glued onto the pages of the mini-scrapbook.  The cream cards then slide into the envelopes for keepsake keeping!

This is just a small scrapbook that has an envelope glued to each page with a name on each. Nothing fancy….just simple and organized. {You could also just have a special envelope for each person that you keep in a pretty little storage box. The container doesn’t matter.  It’s the memories that will!} 

During the summer, we commit one day to giving each family member the “Gift of a Day.”  We secretly plan these days without our children’s knowledge and then surprise them on the morning of their special day by decorating their door and other places around the house with simple posters and balloons. Even though we have done this for over seven years and the kiddos know their special days are coming, the look on their faces on their “Gift of a Day” mornings is priceless!

One of our favorite parts of this tradition is actually looking back in each of our envelopes at the past years’ “Gift of a Day” cards and photos.  My kids get a big kick out of looking back at what they used to think was “the best thing ever” and giggling at those things! 

Here are a few pics from some of our past "Gift of a Day" activities....

 

Lexi's 2008 Gift of Day: Spending a "girls" day with her best friend, big cousin and Mommy!  We went to Build-A-Bear, went to the animal shelter and made some animal treat donations, and played with the animals waiting for homes.  #futurevet  

Lexi's 2010 Special Day:  Another girls' Day at the animal shelter with her big cousin and a few friends! I love that almost every year her idea of a "perfect day" involves serving!  

     

Colton's 2008 Gift of a Day: He just wanted "his people" (cousins, aunts, uncles and friends) to come over and play tractors with him in his room.   We had a cookout menu of hotdogs, carrots and beans. (His choice!) We had over 50 people show up to celebrate Colton's "Gift of a Day" and have pictures of everyone of them in his "tractor room" with him!  #lookatthatsmile 

(Thought you'd get a pic out of a throw back family pic!)

 

 Colton's 2009 Gift of a Day: All he wanted was to have his family over for an "Ehle chicken" cookout and set up his tent!  We actually took pictures of all 60 people who came!  It was incredible! #hesapeopleperson #ehlechickenisfamous

Colton's 2010 Gift of a Day: Oh, you know.... The year that he wanted "his tribe" to come over for a play date in his teepee.   LOL.  Yes, yes I did paint a photo prop for the occasion.  Hey! It was on his "perfect day" request list! Oh... Did you check out all the cool teenagers he invited who painted his nickname "Bubba" on their chests?!   #everyoneinEhlevilleappreciatesthistradition

Hunter's 2008 Special Day:  Hanging out at Chuck E. Cheese, Crazy  Pins and Steak and Shake with his best friend, Ty.   Ty has been a part of Hunter's special day for 11 straight years!  The picture memories are incredible! #bestbuds

 Lexi's 2014 Gift of a Day: This day included chillin' at our pond with her bestie! #simplelifeisgood

So that’s it! It’s pretty simple really….but it has had a HUGE impact on my kids. 

My kiddos are now 15, 15 and 12 and they still LOVE it!  They know I can get “busy” with my job….but they know I know how to “stop the bus” (ß Reference to Ron Clark’s latest Move Your Bus book here! If you haven’t read it yet….do it! It’s great!) and put things in priority. 

 

I LOVE, LOVE, LOVE my family and this is just one simple way I can show them!

 

If this post has inspired you to try granting “A Gift of a Day” to your kiddos (or hubby), click below to snag my template of our “Gift of Day” cards and give it a try!

 

https://www.teacherspayteachers.com/Product/A-Gift-of-a-Day-Tradition-Card-Freebie-1991030

Try this AWESOME Easter/Spring Tradition... It's an Egg Tapping Tournament!

Looking for a fun Easter/spring tradition for your family or group of friends? Start an egg tapping tournament!  It’s simple, inexpensive…and SO much fun!



1. Simply hard-boil one egg per friend or family member in attendance.  (You may color or decorate the eggs as desired, or just leave them plain. )

2. Print out the egg tapping bracket (that can be downloaded for FREE at my TPT store) if you have 16 players or less.  (If you have less than 16 players, you may have to fill in some of the “first round” lines as “byes” or give each player 2 eggs.)

 

Click HERE to download the free bracket!

 

If you have a larger group of participants, you may wish to go to www.freebracketgenerator.com and customize your own bracket.

3. Fill out the first round (lines on both outer edges) slots with players' names or their “egg team names.”

4. Begin the egg tapping tournament by having two players that are pitted against each other hold their hard-boiled eggs with the “points” facing each other.  The players “tap” the eggs together with the intention to break the other’s, without breaking one’s own. 

5. Amazingly, only one egg will crack each time.  The player whose egg does NOT crack or break moves on to the next round of competition.

6. Continue play until a final winner is determined!

Want to know more about the history of egg tapping?"

Click HERE!

Enjoy your new tradition!                           

While I'm Away....

As most of you know... I'm currently in Vegas for the "I Teach K" Conference.  And while I'm lovin' every minute of it.... as a "Momma" it is hard to leave my own kiddos back home in Indiana.  {Oh!  I'd better mention it's hard to leave Mr. Spouse too! He might check my blog!  LOL}  I try not to "over-share" on the personal details of my life, as I don't want to put ya'll to sleep....but as a blogger, I want you to know I'm "real" too!

Now, my life is NOT perfect...but I do feel VERY blessed to have 3 wonderful kiddos and an awesome hubby.  Here is a peek at my family, in case you haven't "met" them....

The little dude {on left in solid blue shirt} is Colton, my "baby."   

Alexa and Hunter are my twins {Super BFFs...never fight!  So blessed! Whew!}

Well... I'm a family-tradition "nut"... and one of the tradition-type things that I do is create a "While I'm Away" box every time I have to leave my kiddos for an extended period of time.  What I do is create little bags or envelopes for each day that I have to be separated from my family and fill them with a trinket or "token" type of surprise gift and then attach a goofy little rhyming note to them.  I place all of the bags/envelopes into a bigger box called my "While I'm Away" box.   Each day that I am gone, the kiddos get to open the box, find the marked bag or envelope for that day, read the silly note or poem that I wrote and attached to each one, and open their surprise.  {Now I do not put anything expensive or over-the-top in the packages.  I'm talking surprises from the dollar store.... like silly string, glow bracelets, puzzle books, etc.} My kids LOVE it!  They have gone from crying when I leave, to asking me when I'm gonna get out the door!  LOL   It's nothing spectacular on my part....but just a little love... which helps deter the "Momma Guilt" of going away for a week!  

Ok... Well I just had to share this part.  Last weekend, I left "While I'm Away Box" for my kiddos.  As usual... they gave me big hugs and told me they'd miss me...but they were also anxious to get me out of the door so they could read their note for the day and open their surprise!  Ha!   Well.. I had a little surprise of my own coming!    When I landed in Vegas and got to my hotel, I opened my suitcase. Guess what I found inside???   Yep!  A "While I'm Away" package of my own.  My youngest son, Colton, had secretly put together his own "While I'm Away" box for ME!!!  When I saw it... I didn't even care what he put inside... I just cried!!  What a sweetpea!

Here are a few of the notes and surprises he made me...

{Think "little guy" perspective here!  He gave what he had!}

This note said, "Here you go Mom.  You will need this."

When I opened the package I found his cross necklace. 

The Ehle family LOVES the Lord!

 This package said, "I know I can't come with you...but here is something that can."

Inside was this happy little dude!  :)

 

This package said. "This should remind you of all that we have done together."

When I opened it I found one of the mini-hats we made together by shrinking a styrofoam cup!

{What can I say... we are an arts-and-craft family!}

This package said, "And here is this... this that I use for all of my advenchures (adventures)."

Masking tape of course!  The kid goes through multiple rolls per month! Ha!

AND FINALLY....

  

This package said. "I am giving you this because it powers up my time-machine...just like YOU power up my heart!"  

(Colton is an "inventor" to put it lightly!  Just last week he invented a "time-machine" which he built himself out of an old booster seat, misc. trinkets... and LOTS of tape!  He used this gemstone as its "power source.")   This note DID make me cry!   

Seriously...this little man is going to make a great husband one day!

Alright... I'll quit babbling on for tonight!   Can you tell I'm missin' my babies???

I'm flying home tomorrow!  Can't wait to hug my little Ehles!!!

I promise I will  blog more VERY SOON about all of the wonderful things I learned in Vegas!

To all of my "I Teach K" and Bloggin' Buddies....

I miss you already!   Have safe trips home... and love on your families!