Oh Christmas Tree

On Saturday, before Thanksgiving, the boys and I broke out the Christmas decorations and put up the tree. This is one of my favorite times of year. I am very nostalgic about Christmas ornaments although none of them were very expensive. I have a specific order in which the first several ornaments go onto the tree. That order has only changed with the addition of each of our boys, but the first has remained the same.


1. Snowman couple, from Tamara, 2000


2. Noah's first Christmas ornament, 2003 (he has several, but there is one that is particularly special)


3. Caleb's first Christmas ornament, 2006 (Being the second child, his first Christmas ornament is not so cool. I'm thinking of replacing it this year and writing in 2006.)


4. A family ornament I bought just last year.


5. Ceramic bone for Romero, from Sara, 2000


Other favorites in no particular order include, basketball photo of Eric for college (the hair and side burns are amazing), giant Mickey Mouse head from Disney World, pair of red dice (Las Vegas), Ohler children photo from 2001, and of course, SpongeBob.


I was always going to be that person with the perfectly coordinated and ornate Christmas tree....like it belongs in the Macy's store window. But that is not me. That is not my life. That is not my tree. My tree looks like a skeleton. My tree is not full and lush. It sheds fake needles everywhere. Very few of its decorations match. It is filled with cheap, homemade, miss-matched ornaments. My tree makes me happy. My tree is perfect!