Why I LOVE Bluegrass Music!

My friend Lori left a post in her blog the other day saying:

"I love Starbucks because it's more than coffee, it's an experience. We go to Starbucks as a family on a weekly basis. It's bonding and a fun outing for our kids and us. If we tell the kids we are going to Starbucks they all yell out YEAH! Nothing makes daddy more proud than to know that they appreciate Starbucks."

I think it's great that Jason and Lori do this with their children! I told Lori that I bet when her children are grown up and have their own children, they will also take their families on weekly Starbucks outings - and I'm sure it will bring them fond memories and a tradition that they will most probably want to share with their own children someday.

I think that when J & L tell the kids they're going to Starbucks, it's not necessarily Starbucks that the kids get all excited about, I think it's the experience - the bonding - special - quality time that they are sharing as a family...and probably the cookie!

In a funny sort of way, they are being "brainwashed" to love Starbucks! Right now they probably love it because mom & dad love it. But the experience of it all is going to take over one day - if it hasn't already.

Reading Lori's post on this made me think of special memories from my childhood that I still carry with me. BLUEGRASS. My dad "brainwashed" us at a very young age to love Bluegrass music. I always say that, but he didn't really brainwash us :) I remember my dad listening to Bluegrass music all the time when we were young, and he would play it really loud. He would sing along in this, oh so nasally & off-pitch tone as he picked his guitar to some Bluegrass tunes. Now I don't know if you guys have ever heard raw Bluegrass music before, but they really do sound like they're singing from their noses. Anyway, we would all laugh at the music. After a while we saw how much my dad loved it, and before we knew it we were singing these catchy tunes too. I fell in love with the experience. Not only was Bluegrass music happy music to me, but it made me feel safe too. I remember feeling so safe as I fell asleep at night listening to my dad picking his guitar and singing downstairs. My parents also took us to Bluegrass Festivals every year all over the States, rain or shine, and we'd camp out and have so much fun. I also remember many nights where my parents, brother and sister and I would sit around the table and sing in harmony while my dad would pick his guitar. We just had a great time, and to this day I LOVEEEEEEEEEEEEEE Bluegrass music....! Like, I love it! I fell in love with Aerie just a little more when he began to like it too...and our kids even love Bluegrass now. We take them to Bluegrass Festivals every year as well...and my parents, my sister and her family all come along. To Ethan & Titus, my dad is "Grandpa Bluegrass". When they see him they say "Grandpa Bluegrass, sing Froggy Went a Courtin'!" I love it, and I am so proud that my children appreciate Bluegrass. The photo that you see is of Grandpa Bluegrass and his two Bluegrass followers :)

Now if I were to ask Eth & Ty if they wanted to go to Starbucks or a Bluegrass Festival, I know they would say "BLUEGRASS FESTIVAL!!!" in a heartbeat. Jason and Lori's kids would probably say, "What's a Bluegrass Festival?"...and opt for the cookie...uhh, I mean the experience of Starbucks :)