Life’s Celebrations and Taking Time to Maximize the Moment

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Last Updated on January 5, 2024 by The Smetz Files

In this post I share the small ways we celebrate life’s moments.

Recently we’ve celebrated a lot of annual events and life celebrations. September marks our wedding anniversary. Jay and I have been married 18 years (we’ve been together more than half our lives!). October brings G’s birthday and mine. We aren’t big, over the top party people, but I got to thinking about the little traditions and the small ways we show our love and appreciation. 

Life’s Celebrations

For our anniversary dinner, I opted to make a grander meal than most Mondays entail. While G and Jay were at baseball practice, S helped me pan sear filets, roast veggies, and set the table. The kids made cards that afternoon after school and she displayed them prettily around our centerpiece. It was a nice dinner and a beautiful way to start our week and celebrate our relationship that granted us our little family.

Traditions

A few years ago I made cinnamon rolls and put a candle in one to celebrate the kids birthday. I’m not sure how, but that’s become an annual tradition. Each year, I wake them up with a candle in their cinnamon roll and sing happy birthday. They’ve come to expect it and comment on it from time to time. 

I am NOT a morning person, but I dutifully set the alarm extra early for G’s birthday (we were already getting up early for a ballgame) to make cinnamon rolls. Not the fancy ones with homemade icing, the easy ones in a tube you can buy at the grocery store. Earlier in the week, S asked if I had cinnamon rolls for G’s birthday or if I needed to remember to buy some. It’s one of those little acts of love that if I had forgotten would have been met with disappointment. 

Maximizing the Moment

Sometimes it’s the little acts that become meaningful and important, especially to them. I am by no means the crafty Pinterest mom who plans themed events with each detail carefully thought out. But, I try to make them feel celebrated, often in small ways, and consistently show them I care. 

Let them eat cake!

One thing I took for granted a few years ago was cake. When he was turning six, I ordered cupcakes and treats for G to take to school to celebrate with his friends. I had treats for after his soccer game that night. But in the hurriedness of celebrating his birthday on a school night, I neglected to have a cake that night for us to sing and blow out candles after dinner. 

When I was putting him to bed that night, I noticed he seemed quiet. When I asked him what was on his mind, he timidly said, ‘we didn’t have cake.’ Insert mom fail and epic guilt. I felt horrible. Of all the ways I tried to be intentional about celebrating his special day, my little guy was disappointed I had forgotten to include an actual cake. Luckily we celebrated his birthday with my parents and brother and sister in law later that week and I made sure we had cake! With candles and singing!

Sometimes the small things feel big. We don’t indulge in planning big parties, but I wonder, what are the small ways you show up and celebrate life events? Let me know how you maximize the moments!

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2 responses to “Life’s Celebrations and Taking Time to Maximize the Moment”

  1. I have a friend who always references spending her time “by making memories.” This post reminds me of that. A cinnamon roll with a candle in it will always be a wonderful memory for your family. This post is a great reminder to embrace life’s small, simple things because they can become the best and most lasting memories for us.