Ornaments With a History

A few years ago, we decided to buy a fake tree.  Instead of the annual trek to the Christmas tree farm, we now unbury the tree from the basement and haul it up a flight of stairs.  I miss the whole picking-out-the-special-tree-affair along with the cold air, hot chocolate, and wonderful smell of pine trees all around.  So right after Thanksgiving, it made it up to it's place of honor and this year I had the privilege of decorating the tree; a job I did mostly by myself while complaining to my husband that I really didn't like doing this alone.  His reply, "But, you're so good at it."  Neither of the girls were home to help.  You can only imagine my feelings, sentimental to say the least.  And if decorating a Christmas tree by yourself isn't emotional enough, with most of the ornaments I pulled out of the box, I remembered a story or an event that brought tears to my eyes.  He really doesn't know what he's missing out on by not helping with the decorating...a trip down memory lane.  Our Christmas tree tells a story, a story of our life together.  Each ornament is a placeholder for a season in our life

   .....a memory,
   .....a moment.

I thought I'd share a few with you...some of you will remember.  We've made many friends during the years, some of which we have never seen again since they or we moved, but you are not forgotten.  We hold each of you dear in our hearts and treasure the moments we shared.

Our first Christmas tree was made up of mostly hand-painted wooden and ceramic ornaments that my mother-in-law and I painted.

 

Our First Christmas Together ornament from our best friends Noel and Jill Bell while we still lived in Ohio.

 While in California, my mom sent this to me saying how much it looked like my 2 year old sister, Alison.

 

These ornaments I made out of Sequoia tree pinecones and sent to each family member with a tag that said from The Nations Christmas Tree.

 

And one to represent our time in Maine from Karen and Rick Chapman.

 

This was from Grandpa Jack for Beki's first Christmas.

 

A friend in Nebraska, Anne, gave me this during my quilting and sewing years!

 Another set I made during my quilting years.

 

This one is from my piano teacher, Ms. Barbara Baker, while taking lessons in Nebraska.

 

A dear friend, Marlene Kniesche, and I and our girls made these angels in 1997.

While in Illinois, I really got into photography and Tonia Ham found this beauty for me a couple years ago.

 

Kristina Garr had an ornament exchange one year and this Santa came from Lisa Bader from overseas.



  The Barbie/Princess ornaments are Beki's...she'll always be my little princess!

 

Hand-painted glass ornaments from my sister-in-law, Beth.

Snowball ornaments from Anthony and Ari's wedding.

 This pretty hand-painted ornament was from my cousin Mandy and Brandon Powers for participating in their wedding.

 

...and, of course, the precious ornaments from our babies that I still proudly hang each year!