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Celebrate Them
Since children have come into our home, I have become quite proficient at throwing a themed shindig. From 2010 to 2013 I threw close to twenty parties between birthdays and adoptions. I enjoy throwing a good party, celebrating someone or something.
Of course children love parties, but even as adults, there is an overwhelming satisfaction knowing this production is for you. Someone put their time and energy into showering you with love, attention and sometimes gifts.
We like to be celebrated.
Celebrating our children is an open opportunity to show them that we love them and we’ve paid attention to what they like and who they are. This can come in many forms from birthday parties to adoption parties to a more subtle “look what I did” wall. Placing your child in the spotlight, celebrating them in even a minute fashion, reminds them that you are on their side, you are cheering for them in this hectic, crazy, stressful journey called life.
We still have birthday parties in our house, but we no longer have adoption parties. Instead, we celebrate the children’s Adopt-a-versary or day they became an official member of our family. The child gets the undivided attention of mom and dad and gets to choose the activities. We see a lot of ice cream and toy stores on these days, but we’ve also gone to the movies, the museum and to the water park. It is a day where the child’s likes are showcased and the attention is focused on them. Although there is some controversy over celebrating the day of adoption, we lean less on celebrating the legalities of what the day meant and more on who the child is and is becoming.
Celebrating your child, showcasing who they are and who they’re becoming is never going to be a bad thing!
Don’t fret if you don’t have an Adopt-a-versary, there are still plenty of opportunities available to you. National Daughter’s Day or National Son’s Day are both prime opportunities to do something out of the ordinary, reminding your child how special they are.
Celebrating your child doesn’t have to be a whole day production either. It can be as simple as having ice-cream after dinner because they received a 100% on their spelling test. It can be a wall in the living room dedicated to their artwork or fridge space saved for their special projects. Making it a priority to celebrate your child even in the small ways will boost their self-esteem in incredible ways.
Our days are busy and can easily get away from us. Time slips by as we rush from the bus stop to work to homework to practice and then to bed. Before we know it, days have passed and we haven’t reminded our children how special they are.
Celebrating our children is a tangible reminder they are loved. Celebrating our children is a break in the monotony of our days to say, “hey, you’re important”. Celebrating our children is our opportunity to put our priorities back in line with their well-being and our relationship right at the top of the list.
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