I loved Lynn’s post yesterday and decided I’d share a few ornaments from our tree as well, along with a thought or two behind each one…
Ornament #1
This little bride and groom has graced our family’s Christmas tree for 33 years now, just as Joe and I celebrated our 33rd wedding anniversary earlier this month on December 15th. My sweet Mom gave us this ornament on Joe’s and my first “married” Christmas together. And even though I loved it when she gave it to us in 1984, I cherish the ornament far more now after having a few years of marriage beneath my belt, and with Mom having passed on in 2009 and now waiting for us at Home.
Ornament #2
This ornament and the next were handmade by our children, Kurt and Kelsey (who are now 28 and 30 respectively), and though the ornaments are getting pretty fragile, I still love hanging them on the tree every year.
Also, a special THANK YOU to all the teachers who facilitate the making of these ornaments! Quite a lasting undertaking!
Ornament #3
And yes, this is Kelsey (not Kurt). Contrary to the volume of Kelsey’s gorgeous head of hair now (see my book From a Distance, where we photoshopped her hair onto the model! <g>), she had very little when she was first born. When I wanted her to wear a bow in her hair then, I had to “glue” it on (with Karo syrup) for the first couple of years. Bless her!
Ornament #4
Mom gave us this to commemorate Kelsey’s first Christmas in 1987. Love it still. And this little horsey still looks good, too!
Ornament #5
This is an ornament from my childhood. A plastic gingerbread girl. Cute, isn’t it? LOL. Not so much. But she’s still special.
Ornament #6
This one is from Mom and also commemorated Kelsey’s first Christmas. Can you tell that Kels was the first grandchild? : }
Ornament #7
And this one is from when I was first pregnant (with Kels) in 1986 (not 1987 like I originally wrote in this post—thanks Mocha Linda!). Mom bought a lot of commemorative ornaments in her lifetime. She always loved Christmas!
What ornaments make you pause each year as you hang them on the tree? And what’s the story behind them? And by chance, do any of you have these specific ornaments, too?
Much love and blessings on your Christmas.
Tammy
P.S. Now, in the interest of full disclosure…
This year’s Christmas tree isn’t even up yet. I’ve got a first draft due Friday, and I’m madly working to get it done. So I haven’t taken the time to get the tree up yet. But I will. Sometime before Christmas!
Tamera Alexander
Latest posts by Tamera Alexander (see all)
- A trip with the grands to the pumpkin patch - November 19, 2024
- Tips for a great Election Day - November 5, 2024
- Petticoat Gumption — Releases Today - October 15, 2024
Love the ornaments! Although I do say Kelsey got a raw deal if the ornament she made had a picture of Kurt. 🙂
I can tell you are approaching a deadline. That cute little horse was Kelsey’s first Christmas, not her first birthday. You are pretty amazing, but I don’t think even you could manage a pregnancy, a baby, and that baby’s first birthday all in 1987! 🙂
I vote to skip the tree this year. Or I’m sure those capable grown-ups you birthed have advanced from styrofoam and craft sticks to be able to put up a tree!
Merry Christmas, sweet friend!
And I was so busy being snarky, I forgot to say that yes, I have the glitter styrofoam ball ornament with my child’s picture, as well! And thumbprint wreaths! My daughter decided we needed a “sophisticated” tree the last couple of years and banned the homemade ornaments, and since I was working and she did the decorating, I didn’t protest too much. But they are safely stored and much loved!
Ha! Yes on that date of pregnancy, Linda. Fixed it! I’m SO grateful for editors, aren’t you?! 🙂 But that IS Kelsey, not Kurt like you thought. She just didn’t have much hair until she was older (I added that note beneath the pic for clarification). I haven’t yet yielded to the “sophisticated” tree, but I’m sure that tree was pretty! Although, I imagine I’d still want to sneak the precious time-honored ornaments somewhere in those branches. 🙂
I have several ornaments that are super special to me. To limit the ones I tell you about, they would have to be our wedding ornament and Jenet’s ornament. Ours is a brass heart that opens to show photos of us just before our first Christmas. I look back on all our sweet memories of the years of where we started and where we’ve been in between when I put it on the tree. We are have you beat a bit on weddings since we wed in 1983.
The other is not one but a small collection. Our daughter went to her heaven home when she was 17. We put her favorite and special ornaments on their own little tree every year and call it Jenet’s tree. It makes up feel like she is here with us bringing back such sweet memories.
I think it’s not the ribbons, lights or food that makes Christmas special. First and foremost it’s the reason for the season and secondly it’s being with those you love and your precious memories – both from the past and those that you are making this year – that make Christmas such a special time of year!
Oh Kay, I’m so sorry you had to say goodbye to your Jenet when she was so young, and I love that you set up her own tree. I agree, too, that it’s not about the tree or the presents or even the kind of meal you share. It’s the eternal gift of Jesus Christ and being with loved ones. And cherishing that time together.
Because we’re not guaranteed another Christmas, much less another day. So let’s glorify the name of Jesus while we have breath in our bodies and love our family and friends well.
Praying for you this week, and asking God to give you a special encouragement this Christmas in regard to your dear daughter. Much love…
I love ornaments with a story. My high school had a Christmas tree contest every year between the classes – ornaments had to be made by the students. I have the ones I made my junior and senior years.
My mother had saved those in a box for me along with other things I had made and a few ornaments that hung on our family tree when I was young. I have a little plastic nativity ornament that my mom bought for 9 cents. I remember hanging those on our tree as a girl. My mom has only angels on her tree now. I’m thankful she thought to save those pieces of my childhood!!
Precious treasures from childhood, Melissa. And a mother’s heart. Glad she thought to save those for you too. Thanks for sharing today!
Hi, Tammy. Thanks for sharing your special ornaments!
I can’t say I’m particularly touched by “sophisticated” trees. If you can take in the entire tree at a glance, that’s okay, but what I love is when guests or family members come over, and it takes them a full five minutes to locate and study all the ornaments on my tree. Some from my own childhood (I’m 62), some were gifts from very special people, some are souvenirs of my travels, some homemade by nieces. It’s almost a timeline of life, and they all bring back wonderful memories. We spend so much time dealing with “today” and planning for “tomorrow” that the few minutes’ pause to see what the ornaments represent can be a nice break. My only regret is if I leave the tree up much past January 2, people look at me like I’m a little off-center. LOL.
Merry, Blessed Christmas!
I so agree with you, Hilda. I can appreciate the ornately decorated, “all coordinating ornaments” trees, but I do love the more personal ones best. Love how you phrased it… “a timeline of life.” Well said. I spend a chunk of my life “deep in history,” and I often think (and remark) that we would do much better as individuals, and certainly as a nation, to revisit our past. That’s partly why I enjoy writing historical fiction.
And about when the tree comes down… I’m a take it down before the New Year kind of gal. But I also hold no judgment against those who leave it up after! ; ) #graceabounds
My oldest ornament is from my Grandma, it is a nutcracker, and when you pull the string, his arms and legs move. I think of her every time I put it on the tree. She died when I was a junior in high school. This year, I have a new ornament that is a stack of books, and I love it! Reminds be of the stack of books next to my bed waiting to be read! Another new one this year is a Santa Lucia ornament. My mom’s name is Lucy and we used to celebrate Santa Lucia with her, and my when my daughter was young, she would wear a white dress & red sash, with a wreath of greenery and candles on her head. She even had an American Girl doll with a matching Santa Lucia outfit! The other ornaments I really enjoy are photo ornaments. Last year I had memorial photo ornaments made with all my grandparents, my husband’s grandparents, and my sweet dad, and my husbands parents. This year I am watching the mail for 3 special photo ornaments from this December: visiting the new US Bank stadium in MPLS with our tall boys (ages 20 & 18), with all of us in our Vikings gear, and two from our recent trip to Nashville to visit our daughter. We visited the John Wayne exhibit at the Opryland resort, and oh my is that place decked out for Christmas! We also drove by Fisk University (really enjoyed To Wager Her Heart), and I took my husband to tour Carnton, he loved it!I had toured it originally a few years ago, and I learned some interesting new things this time. The docent ended by saying that the last soldier fell in love with the governess 😉 Have a blessed Christmas!
LOVE that the docent ended your tour with that, Jeanne! I’ve been on several tours (granted, in the past) and haven’t heard them say that before. Yay! And I love hearing all your news! You guys are world travelers, woman! You’re always going somewhere, it seems, or have been some place wonderful. So nice. And glad your husband enjoyed visited Carnton. All of my “male readers” are writing saying that they’re especially looking forward to With This Pledge, the first full-length novel in the Carnton series that I’m writing right now. The story begins an hour after the Battle of Franklin is underway. It has been a difficult and heartbreaking book to write. But also one of ultimate hope. And a story about all the promises we make in life.
I really enjoyed reading about your ornaments too. So rich! Love you, friend, and thanks for sharing today!
The Kurt ornament reminded me of him in the halls of DCS as a little boy. Your children have certainly grown into impressive adults. God is good and it is lovely to see all of you close enough to enjoy time together.
Merry Christmas!
I hope the deadline is reached so that you can enjoy this Christmas with peace and joy!
Thank you so much, Jen, for your “deadline” prayers. I’m hoping that too (as does my family—I can be NOT very fun when on deadline, LOL!).
And I love that that pic reminds you of Kurt back at DCS. God certainly stood in the gap as our kid grew up, and He covered our countless flubs in parenting more times than I care to remember. He’s so faithful. Love you much!
My tree is also a “timeline of life.” My oldest ornament is a red felt rocking horse I made when I was in kindergarten. My tree topper is an angel crocheted by my mom. I have two little snowmen ornaments with the names William and Patrick in memory of our first son who was born sleeping. I have ornaments that I have collected over the course of our travels in the military, ornaments with our other kids’ names on them, ornaments our kids made, and my favorite collection of “Mischievous Kittens” ornaments from Hallmark. My all time favorite is Hallmark’s 1982 ornament called “Pinecone Home.” I always procrastinate taking down my tree because I so enjoy looking at it. My husband said this year it would be put away by the new year. Yeah, right! 😉
Okay, Theresa…I had to google that ornament (Pinecone Home 1982 Hallmark), and I love it! It’s the one with the little mouse peering out of the pinecone, right? So precious. Thanks for sharing about your ornaments. These time-tested treasures are so precious!
Thanks for sharing some of your favorite ornaments. Very nice.
Thanks for being part of this community, Dianne! Much love and Merry Christmas!
I used to work at Hallmark, so many of the ornaments that have graced our tree over the years are Hallmark ones. This year, with a toddler and a one year old (I guess technically I either have two toddlers or a preschooler and a toddler!!), most of our ornaments are 2/3 the way up the tree and not all are out. Let me see if I remember the special ones, including the ones that didn’t make it on the tree this year for their safety!
We do have one Hallmark ornament commemorating our first Christmas.
There are two ornaments from my childhood. One for my first Christmas and one that some church members gave me in 1987, a cute porcelain bear in overalls.
There is an ornament my grandmother gave me a few years back that was on hers and Granddaddy’s first Christmas tree.
I have a crystal pear and apple I found in an antique shop in Florida that is made from Czech crystal, which is where my grandmother’s family is from.
Each boy has their own first Christmas ornament, and I expect as the years go on, the ornaments they make at school will grace our trees more than the Hallmark ones will 🙂
I LOVE visualizing your tree, Catherine. Especially the “most of our ornaments are 2/3 the way up the tree.” That made me smile. Oh, I remember those days well! Love you much, friend, and wish you and your precious family the merriest of Christmases!
Oh I love a tree full of memories! The wedding ornament is still gorgeous. And the ones handmade by our children with their pictures are so precious. May your Christmases continue to bring memories of joy to you and your family!