The end of May is upon us, and along with the end comes a holiday that our family loves: Memorial Day. What an honor it is to teach the next generation about the sacrifices made for their freedoms, and a wonderful reminder for adults, as well. We will spend the weekend with family, eating a picnic while sharing memories and taking a moment to thank God for all the brave men and women who willingly said:
“For Your Tomorrow, We Gave Our Today”
-Circa WWI by John Maxwell Edmonds
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I love this post from dogonews. It gives a great explanation of Memorial Day as well as the history behind it. Plus, there are discussion questions at the end to talk over with your family.
“What gets overlooked in all this excitement is the real purpose of the holiday, which is to honor and remember the brave men and women of the United States Armed Forces who sacrificed their lives to protect and defend our right to freedom. Though the two often get mixed up, Memorial Day is different from Veterans Day, which is celebrated to honor all living veterans for their sacrifices and contributions.”
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Aren’t these sandwiches beautiful? I am so inspired to try out some new recipes this weekend! Thanks to Meghan over at Bustle, all the work of looking for an updated picnic menu is done. Let me know what you make!
“My family has had the picnic tradition on Memorial Day for decades. Most of my mom’s family was in the service, so Memorial Day was an important part of our family get-togethers. It was always a sign that summer was truly starting for me. You’d grab some lemonade, a few sandwiches, and chow down with everyone you love to celebrate in true family style. Most of our celebrations revolved around food when I was growing up. It’s no wonder I turned out to be such a crazy foodie.”
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Since we live in a military city, we’ve grown accustomed to saying goodbye at the end of a school year. Sometimes our friends move for jobs, relocating or just to get a fresh start. My husband and I moved to Boston in our first year of marriage, 13 hours from both our families, and it was the biggest blessing I never expected. For those of you who are packing up, I hope you find this perspective encouraging!
“Moving to a new city where you don’t know anyone is certainly a leap of faith – and one that a lot of people are scared to do. But now on the other side, I can say that I think everyone should try it at least once, because the growth and life lessons gleaned along the way are invaluable.”
Follow Oakland Avenue for more inspiration
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This article was such an encouragement to me as a mom in the thick of things with little ones. It gave me a long-term perspective to the endless stories my 6-year-old tells me that seem to have no end and the made-up conversations my 3-year-old daughter has with a phantom Disney princess. Don’t skip this one from Kindred Grace!
“Happy, healthy, close (but not clingy) grown families are so rare anymore.When I see one, I want to stop and pull up a chair and watch, like a happy movie, pressing pause at my favorite scenes and hyper-analyzing each minute detail. I watch my neighbors in awe, Sundays set aside for their grown children to drop by. I watch the massive quantities of groceries rushed in the door in preparation, Lay’s potato chips peeking out of the grocery sacks, the smell of the grill starting, as one by one the vehicles arrive, as their kids bring their kids home. I feel like a stalker but it’s hard to tear myself away from the sweetness of a family who loves well.”
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I know this is going around all the social media sites, but her joy is so contagious I just had to post it here. Have a happy weekend, everyone- it’s the simple things.
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Let us know about your weekend!
#pjparenting
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