Christmas Decoration Memories

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Happy December 1!

We decorated for Christmas over the weekend, and, just like the Hallmark commercials suggest, many of our decorations bring back fond memories. 

Ornaments: My favorite Christmas ornament from my childhood hangs on my tree, now. It's gold with white stars and has an inset design of white, blue and pink. I'm not sure why this ornament has been my favorite for as long as I can remember, I tend to prefer blue and silver ornaments, but I remember digging through the ornaments each year to make sure I was the one who hung this one on the tree.  It's mine now, and no one else is allowed to hang it on the tree.


Stockings: The year I was eleven, my stocking was not in the box with the others when my family pulled out the decorations. My grandmother made me one, simple but beautiful, to replace it, but it didn't have my name on it in glitter like my siblings. I think that made me desire pretty stockings because now I own LOTS of them. Every year, I'm tempted to buy more, but I don't. I don't have room  to hang all of the them now!

A few of my stockings!



Santa Claus: I,  also, love Santas. Not sure how many I have, but there are quite a few. You can see some of them on my TikTok video today. There's something about the Santa Claus story that warms my heart. Maybe it's the story of his unselfish devotion of time and energy all year to bring joy to children all over the world. Maybe it's because my mom made the holidays so magical. For whatever reason, I love Santa Claus. I even have The Santa Chronicles books by Jeff Guinn. This three-book series chronicles the life of Santa Claus as told to the author by the big man himself. If you've never read them, I recommend you check them out. Afterall, who else but Santa Claus would find a way to add unusual characters to his team such  as Attila the Hun, King Arthur, Francis of Assissi, Leonardo di Vinci, Benjamin Franklin, and Amelia Erhardt?



Nativity: You can't discuss Christmas decorations without mentioning the nativity. I have three. Mine are much more elaborate than the simple plastic one my parents bought in the 50s or 60s. One is all white, one is tiny, and one is elaborate. All are beautiful. A funny story about the white set. Several years ago, my granddaughter complained that we should have colored lights on our tree. I told her Grandad preferred white lights. This discussion occurred several times, so when I pulled out the white manger scene, she exclaimed with quite a bit of disgust, "Grandad." I had to explain to her that he had nothing to do with selecting the white manger scene. It was a gift from my parents long before I married her grandfather. (FYI, we compromised on the lights and now have the kind that can switch between the options.)




Whimsical Decorations: I can't go without mentioning our Christmas Geese who greet visitors from
our front porch every year. They've seen better days, and a few have their feet glued back together, but they're still with us. 

But my most unusual decoration might be my Mistle Toad. Yes, that's not a typo. I don't remember when or where I got him, but he's been part of Christmas for most of my adult life. Who needs mistletoe when you can have a bright green frog wearing a sprig of it on a red Santa hat? Right?





What about you? What are your favorite or special decoration memories?



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