I remember the first time I took my three youngest kids to Cracker Barrel in Joliet.
It was around Christmastime, and I'd made an impulsive decision to shorten the school day and treat them to lunch.
What they most enjoyed was browsing through the country store, which seemed magical to them in all its various vintage displays.
This might have been the end of our story if our family didn't have another tradition: the celebration of individual feast days.
Each of my children is named for someone in the Old Testament and someone in the New Testaments and the two names together have a particular meaning.
In the case of Rebekah and me, we share a commonish feast day, on back-to-back days.
Mine is the Immaculate Conception on Dec. 8. Hers is the Conception of St. Anne on Dec. 9.
The year after that first Cracker Barrel trip, I offered to take Rebekah there for a special lunch, just her and me, to celebrate our special days.
We've been doing it every year since then. And we pretty much order the same meal (minus the dessert, which is no longer on the menu).
Now that she's an adult and working full-time, we don't always make Dec. 8 or Dec. 9. But we do get there in December.
Some years she has treated; some years I have treated; and this year we split the costs.
And we always tour the store.
Don't be fooled by this photo. We have plenty of engagement on our special day out. She's actually looking up something to show me.
It was around Christmastime, and I'd made an impulsive decision to shorten the school day and treat them to lunch.
What they most enjoyed was browsing through the country store, which seemed magical to them in all its various vintage displays.
This might have been the end of our story if our family didn't have another tradition: the celebration of individual feast days.
Each of my children is named for someone in the Old Testament and someone in the New Testaments and the two names together have a particular meaning.
In the case of Rebekah and me, we share a commonish feast day, on back-to-back days.
Mine is the Immaculate Conception on Dec. 8. Hers is the Conception of St. Anne on Dec. 9.
The year after that first Cracker Barrel trip, I offered to take Rebekah there for a special lunch, just her and me, to celebrate our special days.
We've been doing it every year since then. And we pretty much order the same meal (minus the dessert, which is no longer on the menu).
Now that she's an adult and working full-time, we don't always make Dec. 8 or Dec. 9. But we do get there in December.
Some years she has treated; some years I have treated; and this year we split the costs.
And we always tour the store.
Don't be fooled by this photo. We have plenty of engagement on our special day out. She's actually looking up something to show me.
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