kate says stuff: Things I Know About Tradition

Friday, December 16, 2011

Things I Know About Tradition

I'm linking up with Shaefrum Yay For Home who is hosting her Things I Know linky for the last time.

For many many years now my sister and I have done a 'train day' in December. Some years other sisters have joined us too. Train day is all about seeing the Myer windows, the light show in the Crown atrium and whatever other city Christmassy things tickle our fancy.

This year, for the first time since my big two were very small, there will be no train day.

This year we have children ranging in age from 8 years to just one month old. Six of them between us.

This year I have a son who is unable to cope with changes well, and who freaks out at crowds. The idea of taking him on a train and through the busy city seems terribly cruel.

So despite my sadness that our long tradition has been broken, today I gave the big kids the day off school and we headed to the zoo with my sister and her small boys. We'd gone on our 'train day' last year (which funny enough involved no trains) and it felt like a nice thing to do on such a beautiful sunny Melbourne day.

My big girl who is a beautiful little person was terribly excited, and in the car on the way to the city decided that today would be called 'Zoomas', our Christmas day at the zoo. I love that!

We had a great day, and while it wasn't the day tradition would dictate it was fun and relaxed and my little mate coped extraordinarily well with it all.

I hope that next year when my babygirl is a little older and we may have more tools in the arsenal for helping the little mate our tradition might be resumed. But I'm so happy to have had a day with my kids and my nephews anyways.

Off on an adventure!

My boys <3 So excited! And as I tweeted during the day, the fact that the little mate
is wearing shorts and a t-shirt is nothing short of a Zoomas miracle!