Cafe Traditions... the Blog.

The Cupcake Craze

2009-11-22T07:49:00.000-08:00

I don't know if you've noticed, but cupcakes are all the rage lately. (Wikipedia claims the cupcake craze started in the 1990's, but here in the midwest we didn't find out until we hit the new millenium.) It used to be that cupcakes were just a kid's treat, but they've taken a giant step up to become a gourmet food. There are entire bakeries devoted to the sweet mini cake, and both professional and home bakers are now creating miniature works of culinary art.

I think making and decorating cupcakes is a great activity for kids and adults. There are both simple and complicated decorating ideas for almost every holiday and season. I absolutely fell in love with the turkey cupcakes that my friend Anne made for a girlfriend get-together yesterday. She told me about two great cupcake books, Hello Cupcake and Martha Stewart's Cupcakes with all sorts of decorating ideas. Next time you're looking for a unique and tasty treat to make, try cupcakes, even better yet, make it a tradition.

Wrap Your Christmas Gifts in a Pillowcase

2009-11-11T14:53:00.000-08:00

Yesterday when I was waiting in line at the craft store to get my fabric cut I eavesdropped on the conversation of the woman in front of me. She was buying several yards of cute Christmas fabric. She told the clerk that every year she sews her grandchildren pillowcases and then uses them to wrap their gifts. What a great Christmas tradition! Personally I hate wrapping gifts, I'm definitely more of a bag lady myself. But now I think I could occassionally find myself a pillowcase lady. I'll have to see if I find any cute pillowcases on sale. Or maybe I could even sew them. I'm taking a beginner sewing class next week and I'd have to guess that pillowcases are easy enough that even a beginner could do it. I'll keep you posted on my progress.

A New Thanksgiving Tradition

2009-11-10T13:30:00.000-08:00

I made a trip to Joann's today to pick up things for two projects (more info later). Boy, that the craft store is sure a dangerous place for me. There are a ton of things on which I could spend lots of time and money. Given that fact, I was amazed that I got out of the store with only a few more things than I actually had on my list.

The first project on my shopping list was fabric. I was so happy that I found the exact color of microfiber (raspberry) I was looking for AND it was on super sale. The fabric will be used to create curtains in Stella's room. She already has a cute valance and blinds, but I think too much light comes in during the day making it difficult for her to nap, plus the curtains will keep out any cold that might come in through the window this winter.

The second thing on my list was supplies for my Thanksgiving aprons. I bought fabric paint and simple black aprons. My plan is to use Stella's hand to make "turkeys" on the apron. Each year we'll add another handprint turkey with the year. In a few years I'll have an apron full of turkeys and will also be able to see how Stella's hand has grown. (Shhhhh..... don't tell the Grandma's, but I'm planning to make them Thanksgiving aprons too. I plan to get the handprints of the other grandkids too!) I'll post pictures when they're finished. I think it's a great new Thanksgiving tradition for our family and it doesn't cost much either, the aprons were about $5 and I spent about $7 on a few different colors of fabric paint.)

Sheets for the Season

2009-11-07T17:36:00.000-08:00

The Pottery Barn Kids catalog that arrived this week has some adorable snowman sheets that are perfect for creating a winter-themed bedroom. Wouldn't it be fun tradition to change the sheets in your child's room, your own room, or maybe the guest room to match the season or the holiday? I'm not talking about going crazy with a dozen sheet sets or anything and I don't think it's necessary to cover all the holidays or seasons, but covering some of the big ones would certainly be easy and fun to do.

Tis the Season for Traditions

2009-11-06T15:12:00.000-08:00

I received the Pottery Barn Kids catalog this week and what do you know, they're talking about holiday traditions. One of the traditions that they highlight is having kids leave a note in their Christmas stocking for Santa. Sounds like a great idea to me and a good time to take thank Santa for all the gifts he's about to deliver. This tradition and the PBK catalog reminded me that I need to find a Christmas stocking for little Miss Stella. I would like to find something special that she'll have for many years to come. I'm also trying to figure out if John and I should both get new stockings too so all three of ours will match. It's so hard to decide what I want, there are so many cute options from which to choose. The Pottery Barn catalog has some nice stockings that can be embroidered with our names, and the stores are full of lots of options too. One other thing I'm considering is finding someone to make our stockings. Etsy is full of great handmade Christmas stockings. Now I just need to make up my mind, it will be time to hang the stockings on the fireplace before I know it.

The Birthday Ring Tradition

2009-11-05T08:56:00.000-08:00

CafeTraditions.com reader Christina submitted a new birthday tradition that I have never heard about before but that I hope to introduce into our family this summer when Stella celebrates her first birthday. The tradition is using a birthday ring. For those of you, like me, that have not heard of a birthday ring, it's typically a wooden circle with 12 or 16 holes. The holes are filled with a candle to represent each year (similar to candles on a birthday cake), the rest of the holes are filled with small wooden figures or cut-outs.

When the tradition was submitted, I quickly did a few searches to find out more about the tradition. It seems to be an old European tradition that originated in the Waldorf School. I also found a few blogs that told more details about their birthday ring traditions. Visit the following blogs for more information: Uncommon Grace and The Wonder Years.

Buy a Birthday Ring and start a new tradition in your family. Birthday rings are available online at these stores:

Halloween Breakfast

2009-10-28T07:36:00.000-07:00

I found a great idea on "Homemakers with Hope" that I want to try when Stella is old enough. Not only would this be a great Halloween tradition, but it would work for other holidays as well. The idea is to have a fun holiday-themed breakfast on Halloween morning. Bring out your themed dishes, decorate the table with pumpkins and Halloween placemats, serve Boo-Berry, Franken-Berry or Count Chocula cereal, then put together an actvity pack filled with coloring sheets, word finds, mazes, etc. Give the kids a new box of crayons to work on all the activity sheets. Click over to the "Homemakers with Hope" blog to read more.

See the links below for some fun Halloween-themed activity sheets:

ABC Teach - great projects including craft ideas, coloring sheets, mazes, word search, word scrambles and more.
Halloween scrambles, matching games and more.
Kaboose - a wide variety of activity sheets available.
PapaJan - many Halloween-themed coloring sheets.
Teachnology - worksheets and lessons.
edHelper - puzzles, games, activity sheets and much more.

Passing Down Tradition

2009-10-27T07:03:00.000-07:00

This past weekend my Mom and Dad came to visit. When my Mom walked in the door I saw she was carrying my favorite Halloween decoration, a ceramic witch she hand-painted when I was very young. The witch has been displayed at my parents' house each Halloween for as long as I can remember, and she thought it was time to hand it over to me so I could display it in my own home.

My Mom painted the witch in 1975 when I was five years old. She made me a witch costume for Halloween that same year and the ceramic witch was painted to match. That Halloween I had my photo published in the local paper wearing my witch costume and bobbing for apples. Every October since when the witch is taken out of storage, I remember back to that particular Halloween. I don't remember the details of any other Halloween from my childhood as vividly as that one, but that painted witch helps me remember some of my favorite memories from my childhood and will certainly lead me to tell the story to Stella each Halloween for years to come. If I'm lucky, my Mom will make Stella her own witch costume in a few years so she can make her own Halloween memories. It seems like the ceramic witch has helped to create a few family Halloween traditions.

Halloween Countdown Calendar

2009-10-24T21:27:00.000-07:00

I found a great Advent calendar in the last Pottery Barn catalog I received. The calendar inspired me to look for ideas to make an Advent calendar like my Mom had made when I was a child. While searching online for ideas, I came across an absolutely awesome Halloween Countdown Calendar. While there's not time enough to buy one or make one for Halloween this year, I love the concept. I had never heard of such a thing, but I think it makes for one great Halloween tradition. I'm sure kids will love counting down the days until they get to trick-or-treat. One of the calendars I liked best can be found at Everyday Celebrations. It's a great inspiration for making your own, or if you're not up to the task, she also makes and sells them on Etsy. I can't wait to try this next year.

Stella's First Trip to the Pumpkin Patch

2009-10-21T23:07:00.000-07:00

This year we made a trip to the pumpkin patch with our own little pumpkin. (Complete with pumpkin hat and all!) Of course, I plan to make this one of our annual traditions. It's a great way to spend a beautiful fall day. I have a confession to make though about the visit this year. We left without buying a pumpkin because the line to weigh and pay was waaaaay too long and our little pumpkin was ready for a nap. I'm sure that's the last year we get away with those shenanigans... next year she'll be big enough to wonder why everyone else is taking home pumpkins and she's not.

A Photo with the Scarecrow

2009-10-17T21:54:00.000-07:00

A trip to the pumpkin patch is a tradition that many families share during the fall season. My sister and her family have been visiting the same pumpkin patch/apple orchard for years. One of their family traditions is to have their family photo taken in front of the same wooden scarecrow each year. Like a lot of traditions, it's not complex, but it's memorable. The photo makes a great scrapbook page and shows how everyone changes over the years. This year they added a new baby to the family!

The Great Pumpkin Hoax

2009-10-10T20:20:00.000-07:00

Parents often wonder what to do with all the candy their kids collect on Halloween. I have finally found the answer thanks to "One Charming Blog." Not only does it make for a great new Halloween tradition, it's healthier too. Introduce your kids to the Great Pumpkin. Here's the concept in a nutshell: the kids go out trick-or-treating, when they get home they're allowed to fill up on all the candy they can eat that night, when they're done, they package up the rest of the candy and leave it out overnight for the Great Pumpkin, in the morning an awesome gift will be waiting in return. Click on over to "One Charming Blog" for the full details.

P.S. Now we know why pumpkins are often seen with few or no teeth... too much candy!

I'm Back!!

2009-10-02T14:47:00.000-07:00

Let's just say it's been awhile since I've posted to my blog... a long while! Since the last post a lot of things have changed. The biggest news is the addition of Baby Stella to our family in July. It seems that there are no better reasons to celebrate traditions than children and I'm so excited to reinvigorate Cafe Traditions website and this blog. While Stella won't appreciate traditions for awhile, my mind is already racing with ideas of traditions that I want to celebrate with her. I can't wait!!

P.S. I'm madly in love with our new little bundle of joy.

Graduation Traditions

2008-05-30T14:52:00.000-07:00

I truly enjoyed my college years, but I must admit my graduation itself (the ceremony, etc.) was really not very memorable. I remember sitting through a bunch of boring-ish speeches and waiting for my name to be called so I could walk across the stage to grab my diploma. It's kind of a shame that the culmination to my 4.5 years at the University of Wisconsin wasn't something more memorable. With that said, what do you expect, finals week was still going on and Christmas was just days away.
I found a post today from the Swarthmore College Arboretum. The Arboretum takes part in a special graduation tradition. Prior to marching and receiving their well-earned diplomas, graduates can meet Arboretum staff to have a fresh cut rose from the Dean Bond Rose Garden pinned on their gown. In addition, after the ceremony, graduates are given an Itea virgincia ‘Henry’s Garnet’, Virginia sweetspire, as a living memento of their years spent among the gardens of the campus-arboretum. ‘Henry’s Garnet’ was named and introduced by the Scott staff in 1984. It has exceptional fall color lasting from October into December reflecting the Swarthmore College school color of garnet.
Read more about this wonderful tradition on the Scott Arboretum's Website.

What a unique and memorable tradition. Do you have any special graduation memories or traditions? Please let us know.

Girlfriends Traditions

2008-04-02T07:42:00.000-07:00

Speaking of getting together with girlfriends (I had my get college roomie get-together this past weekend.), I found an awesome website called Girlfriend Celebrations that's all about strengthening women's friendships.
Girlfriends are such an important part of lives and this cool website serves as a resource, gathering place and forum for women interested in forging, honoring and strengthening female friendships. In addition, the site offers awesome ideas for girlfriend celebrations.

The Celebration Index is my favorite because many of these celebrations would make great girlfriend traditions too. You gotta check it out!

Getting Together with Girlfriends

2008-03-31T06:46:00.000-07:00

If you're like me, you know that it's often difficult to find a time to get together with old friends... especially when you have more than two or three people. I have four wonderful college roommates and while we're all close, it's rare that we all together at the same time. So it was really a treat to spend some quality time together this past weekend in Milwaukee. We'd been talking about it for months and finally found a date that worked for everyone. Of course, we ate a lot! Talked a lot! And laughed a lot! Overall we had a great time and a lot of fun. Everyone wants to do it more often.We're planning on seeing a Brewers game this spring/summer and expanding the fun to include husbands too!

We also made our weekend visit a bit educational. We visited the Body Worlds exhibit at the Milwaukee Public Museum. If you haven't heard about it, the exhibit features authentic human specimens preserved through a process called Plastination. This preservation technique replaces bodily fluids and fat with reactive plastics, thereby preserving human tissue in its natural state. It's an amazing look at the human body. It was especially interesting for my two roommates that are a doctor and a nurse to see the body in such a unique display. I was surprised that many of the bodies were not behind glass, but were right out in the open. On many of the bodies, you could get up close and personal to see the minute details. It was truly a remarkable show that left us talking about the amazing body and the controversial nature of the exhibit.

St. Patrick's Day Tradition - Dyeing the River Green

2008-03-17T14:02:00.001-07:00

I was in Chicago this past weekend and got to witness the famous St. Patrick's Day tradition of dyeing the Chicago River green. Boy, when they say green, they aren't kidding! The river turns a beautiful shade of emerald green.
Witnessing it for myself, I decided to learn a little bit more about the unique tradition. Here's what I found. First of all, they've been dyeing the river green for 40+ years. It's a privately funded operation by the Chicago Plumber's Union and the monumental task is pulled off by a group of volunteers. They head out in boats and dump 40 pounds of a vegetable-based dye into the river.

So how did it all start?

The Chicago Journeymen Plumbers Local Union #110 sponsored the St. Patrick’s Day Parade in Chicago since 1957. In 1961, Stephen Bailey, the head of the local Plumber’s Union was approached by a fellow plumber wearing white coveralls that were covered with splotches of green coloring. The splotches were the result of the plumber using dye to locate a disconnect in a waste line emptying in the Chicago River. That’s how Bailey came up with the idea to dye the river green to celebrate St. Paddy’s Day and they’ve been doing it ever since. The dyeing takes place on the same day as Chicago’s St. Patrick’s Day Parade. The downtown parade is held every year on the Saturday before March 17. The dye is dumped into the river about 10:30 a.m. and the green color lasts for four or five hours.

The magic of a Leprechaun?

Believe it or not, the actual dye that is dumped in the river is orange in color, and it turns green when it hits the river. I think it's probably a little Leprechaun magic that turns it into the perfect emerald green color.

Shopping In Style

2007-11-19T20:37:00.000-08:00

I just saw an ad for the day after Thanksgiving sale at Kohl's. They said the store is going to open at 4:00 am! Is that insane or what?!? When I was younger I used to look forward to the Day After Thanksgiving (DAT) sales. I would wake up at the crack of dawn and brave the crowd. I would get to the department stores early enough to get the special savings ticket or whatever little gimmick that lured me there. For the last 5-10 years, I've spent the DAT at home. I just don't have the patience to do it anymore... that is until I heard this.

I was talking to a friend of mine about DAT sales. She said last year when she was shopping she ran into four women who were wearing sweatsuits and hot pink boas and having a great time. She asked them what the boas were for. They apparently have a DAT tradition where they rent a limousine to drive them to all the stores so they don't have to deal with parking. They stock the limo with mimosas (champagne and orange juice) and snacks to get them through the day. They make shopping into a party and they have a great time because they make it unique!
I don't have my limo rented for this year, but I'm seriously considering adding this tradition to my list. And, if I ever decide to wake up early enough to make it to a 4:00 am sale, I might just bring my pillow so I can get a little shut eye in the limo between stores.

Do you have any Day After Thanksgiving traditions that you celebrate? Shopping, baking, decorating? Please share them here.

Sorting Through Magazines

2007-10-18T09:33:00.000-07:00

I was paging through some old magazines and found a few things I wanted to share. This is a list of very cool ideas that make family dinners more fun (submitted by the readers of Better Homes & Gardens).

Once a month, the kids spin a globe and put a finger on it. Whatever country the finger lands on, we scour the library for information. Dinner is based on the recipes we've found and each family member shares what he or she has learned.
On a cold winter's day, I make friend chicken, potato salad, and baked beans. We spread a quilt out in the living room, bring out the paper plates, and play a cassette tape of ocean sounds. The kids talk about the beach and what it would be like to go there.
We have theme dinners based on something our kids are learning in school. A dinner about the letter "B" would include broccoli, baked potatoes, beef and brownies. At dinner we would use as many "B" words as possible in our conversation.

Do you have any fun traditions to share that make your family dinners more fun. Tell us about them.

A Mexican Thanksgiving Feast

2006-11-23T19:18:00.000-08:00

Today is Thanksgiving. We put a bit of a spin on the traditional Thanksgiving this year. John's parents came to visit so we decided that rather than cooking a big Thanksgiving turkey for four, we would do something a bit different. This year we made a Mexican feast. Don't get me wrong, we still ate like pigs, but no turkey, stuffing and mashed potatoes. We made red mole, green mole, steak fajitas, Mexican rice and refried beans. We kind of switched gears for both our appetizer and dessert course... I guess you could say they were more American. For an appetizer we had stuffed mushrooms and for dessert Rocky Road ice cream with chocolate syrup. We had great conversation and great food. Who knows, maybe it could become a tradition.

I have to admit it felt a bit funny without a turkey. That's the first time ever, but tomorrow I'm having turkey with all the fixings at my parents' house. I guess somethings never really change (and probably shouldn't).

Happy Turkey Day!