Chad and I are lucky enough to live close to both of our parents. The first Sunday of the month we go to my mom and dad’s for dinner and the second Sunday of the month we go to his parents’ house. And the other two Sundays we stay at home with just our little family.
Some people think we are weird to not want to eat at our parents every Sunday, but we actually cherish time as just our little family. We don’t get to be together enough and the dynamic and focus shifts when you get a lot of extended family around. Plus I want to establish Sunday night traditions with my kids like I remember from my childhood.
One of my favorite memories is that my mom used to always make orange julius and popcorn on Sunday nights. I still remember hunting down the most buttery pieces of popcorn and fighting my brothers and sisters for them. I asked my mom once why she chose to make orange julius and popcorn for us so often. She said she thought it was a yummy sweet and salty combo, and it was cheap and easy and filling which was important with 10 kids at the table. And she usually had the ingredients on hand.
I loved the sweet and salty combo then and wanted to pass the yummy tradition onto my kids.
So when we get a Sunday night at home with just us, we make orange julius and popcorn too.
Here is the orange julius recipe we follow:
1/3 cup frozen orange juice
1/2 cup milk
1/2 cup water
1/4 cup sugar
1/2 tsp vanilla
5 ice cubes
Blend together and enjoy! I double this recipe for my family of 6.
And our favorite popcorn is homemade with a Stir Crazy popper. (We bagged microwave popcorn about 2 years ago due to the high trans fat content.) We love making our own popcorn. With a little butter and salt it tastes so yummy.
Somebody always spills, popcorn is everywhere and there are lots of dishes to do, but we love our little Sunday night tradition and being together as our little family.
![I spoke in church today and said the Atonement of Jesus Christ is the greatest act of Charity. I read Moroni 7:45-47 to make my point. But wherever there was the word ‘Charity’ I substituted it out for ‘the Atonement of Jesus Christ.’ See if these scripture verses now have new meaning for you:
“And the Atonement of Jesus Christ suffererth long, and is kind, and envieth not, and is not puffed up, seeketh not her own, is not easily provoked, thinketh no evil, and rejoiceth in the truth,
[The Atonement of Jesus Christ] beareth all things, believeth all things, hopeth all things, endureth all things.
Wherefore, my beloved brethren, if ye have not the Atonement of Jesus Christ, ye are nothing, for the Atonement of Jesus Christ never faileth. Wherefore, cleave unto the Atonement of Jesus Christ, which is the greatest of all, for all things must fail-
But the Atonement of Jesus Christ is the pure love of Christ, and it endureth forever; and whoso is found possessed of it at the last day, it shall be well with him.”
So Easter really reminds us of love. The first and greatest commandment.](https://www.raisinglemons.com/wp-content/plugins/instagram-feed-pro/img/placeholder.png)
so funny….we have the same tradition! we sometimes play games, we sometimes watch a nice family movie, but always orange julius and popcorn. we aren’t fortunate enough to live near any family, so we actually are really excited when we get to be with family on Sunday nights!
I forgot about orange julius! I have not made that recipe… well, I can’t remember the last time. Definitely time to introduce my children to this yummy beverage. Thanks for the reminder.
Ha! Rippys had popcorn and fruit smoothies last night too (with the same popcorn containers). First night we’d been home alone together in weeks. It was perfect.
I’d never heard of Orange julius before today!
Every sunday I battle water polo, parents and neighbours requests for dinner. My parents usually see me a little (Dad often comes to my game/drives me), but my friends who live locally have started a Sunday dinner tradition, and with it a block home to my house, it’s oh so tempting usually! So long as my polo game isn’t at ‘food’ o’clock, it’s only a battle between the two!