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How To Celebrate Memorial Day With Children

Memorial Day is May 29th, and it’s the day we remember the people who died while serving in our country’s armed forces. We are most definitely a patriotic family, and feel so blessed to live in the United States. We always celebrate Memorial Day, though maybe not like most people do. We sometimes host a barbecue or get-together with our family, but not always. I love the history of the United States, so I use the opportunity of various federal holidays to teach our children about our history, maybe visit a museum, even spend the day with a family member that fought in a war to honor them. And, we read books that teach us about the holiday we are celebrating, and our country’s history.

Memorial Day with children kids ideas

To me the best way to celebrate Memorial Day is to teach our sons to appreciate the sacrifices of the fallen, admire their bravery, and simply remember them. They loved their country and the people here so much, they died for them, so I would drink to them any day. And today, while I read children’s books with my boys about various past presidents who were pivotal in creating the country, including leading critical wars, I drink a very cold, frothy cup of coffee flavored with International Delight French Vanilla coffee creamer to keep me warm while we pass the time together (it’s 93º out!). It’s a good way to spend time with my boys ♥︎

Memorial Day ideas with children

The day was patriotically themed, with starts and stripes everywhere, and yes, even my cutting board bears the outline of the United States 🙂 Here is my recipe for a really tasty coffee to enjoy while reading with your children, and below are some ideas for ways to spend Memorial Day with your kids.

Memorial Day Coffee Break Recipe

Ingredients (per serving)

1 cup coffee (about 4 oz) chilled
2 tablespoons International Delight French Vanilla creamer
1/2 tsp cinnamon
pinch of cardamom
crushed ice (optional)

Directions

Mix all the ingredients in a mixer cup, and pour into a mug or coffee cup. Serve cold with a festive drinking draw. Enjoy!

It’s too hot to bake this month, so stay tuned for more refreshing (no bake) recipes and beverage ideas that include our favorite International Delight coffee creamers all summer!

Memorial Day beverage ideas

How to celebrate Memorial Day with children

If you are looking for some great ideas for ways you can celebrate Memorial Day with your children, or are just looking for some resources for yourself as well, here are a few ideas I really love.

1. Attend a local parade if your town offers one. In New York City, you can find out when the parade in your borough begins at Time Out New York here. On Long Island, the start times and locations for the parades in each village can be found here at Long Island Pulse.

2. Read about past heroes who died for our country while serving in the military, or even a specific book about Memorial Day. The Wall, by Eve Bunting, is about a boy and his father who travel to the Vietnam War Memorial to find the name of his grandfather who died while fighting in war, and shares an understanding of the holiday in a way children can understand.

3. Thank a veteran! While we should raise our children to always revere those who willingly fight for us, on this day in particular they can make an effort to approach a uniformed military person and thank them (and it’s just so cute to see little kids do this too ♥︎ ). Another great way to thank our military is to send a care package to soldiers who are fighting for us now. Sit with your children and a stash of toiletries, stationery items, popular paperback novels, and boxes to put together some care packages (add a note in each expressing their appreciation) to send off to those who can’t be here with their families to march in a parade with us, because they are somewhere else fighting for our freedoms.

4. If you enjoy getting crafty with your children, make homemade thank you cards and United States Flag crafts to bring to a local Veteran’s Hospital or Veteran’s Home while visiting for the veterans to enjoy.

5. Consider a road trip. Travel with your family to Washington, D.C. to visit the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, to Virginia to visit Arlington National Cemetery, or a museum or memorial local to you that honors fallen soldiers. Bring flowers and a grateful heart, and use the opportunity to learn about our country’s history and why we participated in the various wars over the years.

Memorial Day International Delight

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Happy Memorial Day!

This is a sponsored conversation written by me on behalf of International Delight. The opinions and text are all mine.