"One of the most delightful things about a garden is the anticipation it brings."

Monday, December 20, 2010

A Sentimental Christmas.

Christmas has always been my favorite holiday.  Growing up my parents made it very fun for us kids.  My Mom always baked and sewed and decorated, just went all out.  My Dad would take our family to a tree farm to cut down our tree.  It really was never about the gifts, but about making the whole season special for us and for others.  Christmas eve after church neighbors and friends would stop by to eat the food that both my Mom and Nana would make.  I'm hoping that we are making the same impression on our kids.  We are trying to teach them that it's not about "stuff" but about giving to others in whatever way we can. 
Each year as I look at our decorations I remember different people or places.  I have ornaments that I made as a kid, that were given to me by friends when I was little or the ones that my Mom still buys us each year.
I thought I would share a few things that make Christmas special for me.

This turkey ornament is actually a light bulb.  It was on my great Nana's Christmas tree long ago.  My Nana gave it to me many years ago, probably when I was in high school.  It's made it through many moves and each year when I hang it on my tree I wonder what it looked like lit up on a Christmas tree somewhere in Canada.

This very old Santa was given to me by my elderly piano teacher, who happened to be our next door neighbor, when I lived in southern California as a little girl.  It was very old when it was given to me all wrapped in tissue.  I still remember the day she gave both my sister and I one of these Santas.  I always wonder about it's history.  I still have the piano books that we used during lessons, one of which is a Christmas one.

Our Christmas tree has no theme other than it looks like it was decorated by a family with kids.  I love all the homemade ornaments my kids have made over the years.

This old felt stocking was made for me by a neighbor for my first Christmas many years ago.  I've seen newer and fancier ones, but I could never replace this stocking.  Things with memories are far more important to me than something fancy and new.  I love the ric rac trim, remember when that was on everything?

The Littlest Gardener created this gingerbread house.  We had fun working on it together.

How many people have their very own princess helping them bake?  The Littlest Gardener likes to be dressed up in costumes and Cinderella is the perfect one for making Rocky Road fudge!  Her ballet recital yesterday was probably one of the sweetest things I've seen.  She absolutely loved being on the stage and having people there to watch her.

I want to wish you all very Merry Christmas!  I hope it's a good one full of many new memories.
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36 comments:

  1. Catherine, I just love these memories. My tree isn't a fancy tree either, completely decorated by the children I taught or my own. There are some adult ornaments but not many. Happy holidays to you and your family!

    Eileen

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  2. Oh what a sweet post here! I loved seeing all of your special christmas ornaments and celebrating memories! I too enjoy those things the most about Christmas. Wishing you and your family a lovely week and Christmas holiday!

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  3. You are making great memories this year too.
    I'm the same way about ornaments. Each holds a memory of a person or place we visited. i like to buy ornaments on our travels. I still buy some just because they're pretty but I mix them all up on the tree.

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  4. Wonderful post. You can never have too many happy memories.

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  5. How lovely. It's beautiful how tree ornaments carry such precious memories. I always like to look at my friends' trees and hear their stories about where the ornaments came from.

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  6. What a great article. I really, really loved it. I'm so glad to hear someone is concentrating on the meaning for the season; a time for giving; and traditions. I love how you have hung onto all of these special ornaments. That's what makes a tree so special. We do the same--Christmas decorations from what the kids made at school; an ornament we got for their first Christmas, etc. Thank you for posting this. I really enjoyed it. Have a great holiday.

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  7. Merry Christmas to you Catherine! I loved seeing your old ornaments, the best ones have some sentiment attached to them. Besides the ones in my post, I also have a couple that my son made when he was little, including a beardless Santa popping out of a chimney made from a toilet paper roll!

    Littlest is so cute in her Princess dress! You are right to try to make sure your kids understand that Christmas is not about getting stuff, but about giving!

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  8. Merry Christmas Catherine, you are so lucky to have your wonderful memories and your family around you at this time of year. Wonderful post, I love your tree and decorations.

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  9. Thank you so much for sharing these precious aspects of your Christmas with us, Catherine! What an adorable little Princess and I love her Gingerbread Cake - wish I could taste a piece when it gets eaten :)

    So happy to hear she enjoyed her ballet recital so much.

    I think you've succeeded in creating the very nicest Christmas traditions possible. Well done and have a truly Wonderful Christmas 2010 with your lovely family!

    Hugs,

    Des xo

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  10. Dear Catherine, Your tree is so lovely, the stockings, gingerbread house and your little angels . . . the one on top of your tree and the sweet helper closer to your heart . . . are all so sweet and perfect . . . the sort of Christmas I love. Happy Winter Solstice and Merry Christmas to you and yours. Lovely post!

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  11. Aww, your little ones get more and more precious! Funny how the most simple and (worn out) ornaments carry the most sentimental meanings...My oldest is 20 and we still feature her pre-school pinecone with glitter that's hanging on my a mere thread...:)Happy Holidays to you guys, Catherine!!

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  12. This was just the perfect post for me to read while enjoying my first cup of coffee this morning.

    I luv your stories that go with the ornaments and might I add that I luv the word ric rac. Yes, I remember it being used in what seemed like every craft.

    The Littlest Gardener aka Cinderella, was the perfect touch for the end of this post. What an adorable face.

    donna

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  13. Every year when I get out the ornaments I enjoy all the memories that go along with each. You can have fancy, sentimental is best!
    Love the Cinderella dress requirement for making fudge. We should all dress accordingly when making sweet treats.

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  14. Gosh, great minds think alike as I am posting a post very similar to this one tomorrow! My last one of the year as it is time for a break. I am so glad you shared your special memories. That Santa and turkey ornament are beautiful. I know you don't know the Santa's history but when you pass it on maybe you could pass along the history? I game my neighbor's daughter something similar and told her the history. We'll see in 30-40 years if it impacted her. Littlest Gardener is so cute!

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  15. Lovely. Merry Christmas to you and happy new year.

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  16. I am thinking I need a princess to help me!! How adorable!
    Your ornaments are treasures Catherine. I love the old Santa. I keep everything too even tho I like to "deck" out my trees with themes. I also think it's great you're teaching your kids that Christmas isn't about "stuff." It seems like we all have so much stuff anyway!

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  17. Absolutely delightful and a great reminder of the true magic of Christmas! Merry Christmas to you and your family.

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  18. Catherine, your home is as pretty inside as out! Your daughter and my girls are so similar - they spend all day dressing up and loved being in their dance recital a couple of weeks ago. It was especially fun to watch the 2-3 year old class with my youngest - not a whole lot of dancing going on but a lot of sweetness from the tiny dancers.

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  19. What fab decorations and with so many memories.
    Happy a lovely Christmas

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  20. 'Merry Christmas to you and your family Catherine!
    I love to look at the old X-mas tree decorations. And those made by kids are very special.

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  21. Decorating our tree this year was also a walk down memory lane. You have a very adorable helper. I hope you and your family have a wonderful Christmas.

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  22. I love the image of your princess stirring the bowl filled with marshmallows! It is priceless. I hope that you and your family have a wonderful Christmas!

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  23. You certainly need a big tree for all these memories!

    I'm racking my brains for what we used to call 'ric rac' trim. It's a very cheerful and child-friendly way to decorate things.

    Happy Christmas!

    Esther

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  24. Homemade ornaments are the best....

    Merry Christmas...

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  25. Oh Catherine what a sweet post. I loved seeing your old ornaments and such sweet memories to be shared. I love the Princess and what a great helper. You are blessed. Wishing you a Merry Christmas with the family.

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  26. I forgot I had already commented - but nothing like two and then this one. Love

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  27. Your princess is so sweet! Aren't those sentimental ornaments the best? My problem is that I forget where some came from! Yikes, old age? :)

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  28. Oh great, this is beautiful stuff.

    Just like to share with you a funny quotes...

    "I don't want to achieve immortality through my work. I want to achieve it through not dying." - Woody Allen

    You can get more funny quotes at http://quotelandia.com/category/funny

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  29. Hello Catherine,

    I also love special family Christmas traditions and that includes decorating our tree with special ornaments. Doesn't it seem like the more unique and sometimes shabby ornaments mean the most to us because of who gave them to us?

    I wish for you and your family a very Merry Christmas!

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  30. and what could be better than what you've shared with us??

    Love, holiday joy, and big hugs to you and your little gardeners,

    Sharon

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  31. Thank you for sharing the memories. Your turkey ornament is very old isn't it. I remember seeing ones like this in antique stores. Shapes of a boot or a candy cane that were light bulbs. Merry Christmas to you on the West coast and have a great holiday.

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  32. There's creative talent gone into that gingerbred house.

    A very merry Christmas to you and yours

    Rob

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  33. Thanks for sharing your tree...I love those old ornaments that have stories attached...makes every Christmas a trip down memory lane!

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  34. Wishing you and your family a very Merry Christmas and a Happy and Festive New Year! I've enjoyed your garden blog so much this past year :) Cheers, Jenni

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  35. I enjoyed reading your Christmas memories and seeing your ornaments. We've always had the same "theme" as yours, with all kinds of ornaments saved over time. We have some old ones, too.

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