Happy New Year, Year of the Snake!

The other day, someone asked me if I celebrated and what I planned on doing, leading into a discussion about raising children with our traditions and cultures, which is a whole entire post on its own. It made me think about the traditions I grew up with, and what I have carried over now that I am a parent.

I was raised traditionally Chinese in America. While I may not fully believe in all the superstitions or the repercussions when traditions are not followed, I still tend to prepare and celebrate the new year pretty traditionally.

Here are a few things I do to celebrate Chinese New Year, in no particular order and not all encompassing.

1. Cut and wash my and my daughter's hair prior. On that note, I also make sure we shower the day before, with no showers or washing of hair on the first day of the new year. Cutting or washing hair signifies cutting or washing away wealth and prosperity, while a shower or a bath signifies washing away good luck.

2. Clean the house and do a bit of decluttering prior. I do not allow for cleaning or sweeping on the first day and no garbage can be thrown away into the outside garbage can. Cleaning and decluttering helps to get rid of any bad luck from the previous year in anticipation of a brand new, hopefully lucky, year. Sweeping, cleaning, or throwing garbage away on the first day of the new year can mistakenly get rid of your wealth and good luck for the year.

3. Wear brand new clothes, preferably in red, without holes or tears. New clothes signifies a new beginning, with red being a color attributed to strength and prosperity. Clothes with holes and tears will attract bad luck and also cause you to lose wealth.

4. Hot pot on the eve of the New Year with a light, mainly vegetarian meal on the first day. Cooking a traditional Chinese meal with all the symbolic foods can be a bit much for me, so I've carried over the tradition of having hot pot for dinner, with noodles, dumplings, seafood including shrimp and fish balls, to make things easier with a quick cleanup. Having a vegetarian first day is to rid your body of the glutton from the previous day and extend longevity. We also have tong yun 湯圓, glutinous rice symbolizing togetherness and completeness, on the fifteenth day, which also happens to be Chinese “Valentine's Day” and the Lantern Festival.

5. Giving red envelopes filled with an even domination to my children.

Do you celebrate Chinese New Year/Lunar New Year? If yes, what traditions do you love the most and why?