The Christmas Ornaments

The Christmas decorations have been up for two weeks, and we only have two more weeks to enjoy them. Danny has been watering and taking care of our live tree, which explains why it is still alive.

And, before I show you our tree, our precious tree, I wanted to explain it to you. Explain it to you? Why would I need to explain it to you?

Because apparently the thing to do is to decorate your tree to look like the trees at the mall. All the colors match, you have a dozen of the same ornament/ball, and it has ribbon draped all over it. You aren't cool, trendy, "with-it," if your tree isn't Martha Stewart style. Now I like to be up on the trends, but if this tree is standard, then ours is borderline Charlie Brown.

Our tree doesn't have any of that stuff. It has white blinking lights (yup, the kinds that go on and off again), because that's what Danny likes. It has red beads, because I like red. It has a white star on the top. It even has a brand new skirt from World Market - that's this year's addition. And it has all of my childhood ornaments practically tied and taped to the branches.

I could buy all new ornaments - but that would take money. And what memories do you have by buying all the same colored balls at Walmart.

And do I have memories.

This is the little wooden angel that Joey painted for me 10 years ago, in 1996.
He was eight.

Hallmark came out with this "Baby's First Christmas" in 1981. My parents bought it to celebrate their new daughter; it's been on our tree every year since then. The wheels roll - I use to drive it around like a hot wheels.

I picked this one out, probably in kindergarten. I loved it. You stick a light in the back and it lights up. This is what I really imagined Santa's house looking like at the North Pole. It's so old that the white glitter snow on the roof has turned yellow.

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I got this in my stocking the Christmas after I went to Moscow, Russia. It reminds me of Bible clubs, showers with no walls/curtains, squatty-potties, and precious little rug-rags.

Mom and I bought this ornament at a craft fair when I was in elementary school. It has always been "our" ornament. There's a little button you push on the back that use to play "White Christmas" in a tinny, canned-music sort of way. It died a long time ago, but I can still remember exactly what it sounded like.

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It's hard to read, but this was one of our "First Christmas 2005" ornaments. It symbolizes all things Greenville, icy, new, and us.

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Well, here's the final product. Now you know the stories, so you won't mind the mismatched, uncoordinated, very un-mall-like tree we have in our apartment.

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And, just because I can, and because you're STILL reading this blog, here's where we hung our stockings and displayed our nativity in our mantleless/fireplaceless apartment.