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"Every year, since the year we moved in, we&amp;#039;ve had a pumpkin carving party the weekend before Halloween. Well, all except this year.  The fact is, I&amp;#039;ve got too much on my plate right now to host a party, and it happens that this past weekend was the kid&amp;#039;s weekend at their Dad&amp;#039;s. Combine those two, and a pumpkin-carving party seemed like a whole lot of work for just me. Besides, the kids would have had a fit if I didn&amp;#039;t wait so we could carve pumpkins together. Still, I felt a little sad, not just for me but for the inevitability of it all. We used to do a yearly Luau at the end of the summer, too. I held it all by myself the summer after Peter left and discovered that I was exhausted and ready to brain everybody who was still laughing and hanging around at midnight. I gave that one up the following year when I just didn&amp;#039;t have the extra cash to do it. It slipped quietly away, and instead, I concentrated on our yearly Halloween gathering. Now that&amp;#039;s going to be hit-or-miss, I suppose, depending on the weekend rotation.  So last night, I poured the cider and put the plastic tablecloth on the table, pulled over the big trashcan and the three of us had a little party of our own. We may not have had all the festivities, but we were certainly festive enough for us. We&amp;#039;re what matters, along with the new traditions we build together.  This year&amp;#039;s pumpkins are looking mighty fine, don&amp;#039;t you think?    Did you have to let go of some old traditions when your marriage broke up? Do you miss them? [Follow Ellie on Twitter and Facebook] "^^<http://www.w3.org/2001/XMLSchema#string>
<http://www.womansday.com/relationships/dating-marriage/a48554/haunted-by-traditions/>