BIRTHDAYS  – Breakfast in bed.  (Len said this was a Swedish custom.)  Donuts supplied by Len and, of course, presents for the birthday candidate that could be enjoyed all day.  
 
EASTER – We decided early on to separate Easter and bunnies so instead we celebrated Easter by itself and had a “Welcome Spring Day”.  A whole day of fun – 1)  baking and frosting cookies.  2) doing crafts  3) playing games  4)planting plants with Grandpa.  Len bought the plants, soil, pots and gloves, etc. – Len offered $5 if the kids could keep their plants growing until July 4th.  
 
WACKY WEDNESDAYS – We did a variety of things when the kids were young from learning about history of family – rubbings taken from the graves at the cemetery of relatives that had passed.  Drawing of Old City Hall (downtown Tacoma) every year to see improvement in skills.  Excursions to places that interested us.  Painting and color lessons.  
 
SEVEN YEAR TRIPS – When each of the grandchildren turned 7 years old, we took him/her to San Francisco.  We always stayed at the Beresford Hotel, close to Union Square which was so small that they always knew us.  We did various things.  Some included cable car rides, Fishermans Wharf, cathedrals with rose windows, China Town and side trips to Monterey, the aquarium and the giant redwoods down the coast.  We had so much fun and the kids journaled each day (not their favorite thing to do) and we did a picture album for each of them.
 
CHRISTMAS SONGS – We also had a custom of caroling which began when Joyce & Janice were very young.  We would send them up to the doors of our favorite people to sing “Oh Come All Ye Faithful” & “We Wish You a Merry Christmas” and deliver a small token gift.  The Lovgren’s were not thought to be a singing family so when Janice married Tom and had children that were musical, we had good voices, keyboards, guitars and individual candles for each one to carry.  
 
When Brad married Joyce, he had a living mother and father in our area, so to make it easier for all, he gave us the nicknames Mazzi and Pazzi which later became Mazeratti and Pazeratti – just thought you’d want to know that.