A jumble of treasures

I really thought I was not going to be able to complete the decorating this year. I had a rough week, for some reason. But I enlisted the help of my two boys, who while not fighting, actually did a pretty good job of decorating our Christmas tree.

I'm no longer a fan of our nine foot artificial tree, but I realize I'd be on my own going out to a farm to choose and cut down a live tree. Can't seem to convince my husband that this is a fun, memory-making activity! I believe it's because one year, when we had just one tiny child, we brought home a live tree and the trunk needed shaping up in order to fit into the tree stand. Unfortunately, he didn't have the right tool, and this made the job nearly impossible. All sorts of non-merry expletives flew, and I do believe he never wants to handle a live Christmas tree again. It's so sad.

So, like the many times I've done it before, I'm making the best of the situation. Looking back at it now, I think the most difficult part of the tree decorating for me was clearing out the toys and train table from our front room in order to make space for the tree. I've been thinking for a while now that I want my formal living room back. It's currently in use as the Wii room, and we hardly even play Wii anymore.But I've had visions of beautiful seating and stylish lighting and, oh never mind. It ain't gonna happen for a few years.

Once I reclaimed the room, it was easier to move on with the festivities. And to help, I put a Veggie Tales Christmas special on Netflix thru the Wii. So the boys occasionally fought over the step stool but they really did a fantastic job of decorating with what might be the strangest assortment of Christmas ornaments ever.

Here you'll find handmade ornaments I picked up at craft shows, ornaments the boys made, a few here and there that I made, some from different vacations we took, a few "Hallmarky" type ones, and some rustic-looking ones because I just love that look of woodland holidays. There are a few smaller ornaments with the boys' names on them, and I now realize I'm missing some. Bummer... I see a few that were giving to me by family or friends as gifts and I treasure them so much. See the knitted pickle to the left? That's from my knitting friend. It brings good luck!

When I was younger and at home, my mom would have my older brother and me decorate our tree, which was always a real tree. It smelled so good... My parents had made a trip to Germany one year to visit my sister and her family who were stationed on an Air Force base. They brought home with them many beautiful German ornaments that I can only describe as wooden, colorful and whimsical. These are still in boxes at what is now my brother's house. He doesn't decorate for the holidays really because it's just him, and he's very busy and tired from his job.

I have fond memories of John and I taking out each ornament wrapped in tissue and saying, "Oh! Remember this one?? It's my favorite!" And we had a lot of favorites.

Today, I still have that same feeling when I unwrap a favorite ornament. It may not be much to someone else, and it may not be trendy or stylish, but it means something to me, and hopefully to my family.

Here's the tree without it's topper, that I had to go buy this year. A 9' tree with a 9' ceiling leaves little room for a topper!