I just discovered something new about October, and it’s not another birthday. A fun trivia fact about me is that I know someone with a birthday for each of the first fifteen days of October, but I digress. October is family history month, and there are many things that you and your family can do to celebrate your heritage.
Sometimes it may be a challenge just to get everyone in your home around the table for dinner, let alone get through dinner without someone getting a phone call, text, or other distraction that gets in the way of sharing a meal as a family. This month, challenge your family to not only have dinner together one night without any interruptions, but also after dinner linger at the table or gather in another comfortable place in your home to share family stories. Enjoy a special home made dessert from a family recipe as you let the kids ask you questions about what your life was like when you were younger, or play old home movies from your childhood.
Start that family history scrapbook that you have been meaning to start. Set aside time to get your supplies ready, and start cutting, pasting, writing, and decorating your family’s newest treasure. Get other family members involved by inviting them to contribute photos and other mementos or write short anecdotes about events from their lives. When the scrapbook is finished, visit relatives that live near by to share it with them. You may even want to send your scrapbook traveling around to your more geographically distant relatives. Include a few blank pages, and invite them to add their contributions. When the book eventually returns to you, you may be pleasantly surprised by what you find in it.
Create a family cookbook. Get out Grandma’s recipe box and type the recipes into your favorite word processing program. Scan some photographs and add them to the pages along with information about the ancestors who created the recipes to make it even more interesting. Once you have finished your cookbook, you can make copies to give as gifts later this year when the holidays come around. Also, why not invite relatives that live nearby to come for dinner and enjoy some family favorites that they may not have had in a while.
These are just a few ideas to get you started on your plans for family history month. How will you be celebrating your heritage this October?