I love Christmas! I love everything about it!! I think I am a big kid at heart. I just get so excited about the whole process. I love Christmas songs and, oh,oh, oh those Christmas lights that totally takes me back to childhood.(It doesn’t take much to do that!) I just love it all!!! My list could go on and on.
As all families do, we started certain traditions early in our marriage and especially after we had our three sons.
One tradition is that each one of our sons get a certain type of ornament from their two Mima’s (that is what they call their Grandmothers.)
Son #1 gets: Soldiers and Dogs
Son#2 gets: Bears and Rocking Horses
Son#3 gets: Santa Claus’ and Trains
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In addition to those ornaments, I also give them one. So every year of their life they have received a minimum of three ornaments.
Our tree is covered. In fact you can barely see the tree. It might seem over the top to most, but to our family it is full of sweet memories.
Our tree holds special ornaments:
Made by special little hands.
First pair of baby shoes.
Soccer and baseball buttons.
First pair of glasses.
Two ornaments from my parents and my husband’s parents very first Christmas tree over 61 years old.
You can tell that ornaments are very special in our family. When my boys were young they would run home from the bus stop after school to see if their Mima’s had delivered their special ornament for that year.
The two oldest boys are married now so on their first Christmas as a married couple, they were handed their box of ornaments. Needless to say, I cried! I am so blessed with two DIL’s that treasure the ornaments as much as their husbands and I do.
So now the tradition is being carried on and my three grandchildren get their own special ornaments from me and from their great grandmothers and their own parents. Now my son’s family trees are beginning to be full of special memorie's too.
I hope you have enjoyed just a glimpse into one of the special traditions we have in our family.
“Enjoy the Process” Of:
Making your own special Christmas tradition with your own family.
Kathysue
Holiday Hint:
Look back at your childhood memories to find something that you can use to start your own family traditions.
Here is a little book with ideas on Christmas traditions to help you out. It would also make a great gift or Stocking stuffer.
34 comments:
fuuuun! its beginning to look a lot like christmas around here love.
oh i love all these traditions..makes me happy!
xoxo
What a beautiful family tradition & so lovely to see the next generation continuing it on...lovely!!
This is a wonderful family tradition. Your tree looks wonderful all full of memories and special ornaments. Thanks for sharing.
hugs
Sissie
What a great tradition, Kathysue. I love a tree full of ornaments.
I absolutely adore the look of your tree. I love that lush feeling when the tree is packed with ornaments. The fact that your sons' collection of ornaments fill the tree adds so much. Isn't it fun unwrapping them every year and reliving the memories?
Oh I love looking at your tree and all the special ornaments. I remember you showing the baby shoes and the first pair of glasses and they are just so precious. Such a wonderful tradition and so wonderful that it is being carried on. I can't wait to see your tree this year and all of your decor. Love ya. Hugs, Marty
Lovely family tradition!! I never really thought of us having traditional ornaments, but you just made me stop and think - maybe we do. They just aren't as sentimental as childhood memories, or of kids of our own (since we don't have any) but there are a few I enjoying seeing put out every year: Our silver initials plus "NYC" initials b/c that's where we were engaged and married... I'm doing a white Christmas this year - hmmm... May be revamping these to gold....
Thanks for making me think - lol =) Your tree looks beautiful and it looks like you're well on your way to a spectacular season!
And BTW: LOVE your "index-card-list"!! That's a great idea!! Thanks for stopping by...
:D Lynda
Hi Kathysue,
I enjoyed reading about your family's special Christmas tradition. I would love to see all your ornaments and hear the story behind each one.
Our family started the tradition of music about 8 years ago. After dinner,
we gather in the living room where the piano is and our two sons sing. It is their gift to me. One year, our daughter joined in. Needless to say, it always makes me cry!
Hope your Thanksgiving is wonderful. Can't believe it is already here!
xo Delores
Dearest Kathysue,
You are so right and it is a precious way of passing on to your next generations. Fond memories with special meanings!
Exactly as I wrote in my November 16 blog: This season is all about our loved ones and memories...
Wish you a Happy Thanksgiving!
MariettesBacktoBasics
Hi Kathysue, love it! My tree is like that, too. The ornaments hold special memories - 41+ years of memories. I could do a theme tree of just beautiful ornaments, but for me, it would be cold. Love your tradition. Linda p.s. I'm headed back to your post on the whites for a look at the hutch. It is my inspiration for my vaisselier this year! Thanks.
I think traditions are what I love best about the holidays. It is so much fun to learn about each families traditions and hear the stories behind different ornaments. Thanks for sharing.
Dear Kathy Sue, that is a wonderful tradition! I did it for many years but have them all packed away because my kids have their own "design": for their trees. I don't blame them, I do too now! Our tree is COVERED too!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE CHRISTMAS SO MUCH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for sharing your beautiful pics! XO, Pinky
It is so beautiful. I have many trees for exactly the same reasons. We started collecting an ornament on family trips and vacations too. If we can't find one, we find a memento and make one. Emjoy the season.
KathySue thanks for sharing such beautiful memories with us. We are just starting the process of including new family members (ie sons and daughters in law) and looking to let go of old traditions and start new ones. Not an easy process! Your tree is beautiful and you must enjoy setting it up each year as I do, remembering all the special moments, people etc.
I hope you and your family have a wonderful holiday season. (this is going to show from Rick but it is really diane@onlinefabricstore.com
I luuuuuuuuvvv your tree!!! So glad I got in to see it! I'm married 35 yrs. and I have 2 darling, beautiful daughters, one 32, the younger 31...from the youngest I have 2 adorable granddaughters, 6yrs. and 3yrs,10 mths. old. I have a Xmas tree like yours, full of memories with ornaments since our first Xmas, some later made in ceramic by my daughters when they were little girls, some I got as gifts from my, father, grandma, and mother in law...all of them deseased now, so you can imagin how I treasure them. Pics in little Xmas frames with my kids when little and grandkids when little...presents from nany friends and family. This tadition my daughters have followed too! I'll post it when I finish it.
Meanwhile...have a very happy Thanksgiving.
FABBY XO
I love that. I would give anything to have a tree that is filled with family memories and tradition. I don't have children so my tree is very beautiful, but more adult. I like it, but it's just not the same. Yours is wonderful!
Thank you everyone for your sweet reception of my story. I do love my family ornaments and I will have to admit that when I turn on the Christmas music and take each ornament out of their boxes, I cry every single year. I know what is in there but it pulls at my heartstrings!!! Kathysue
Oh, what a special tradition and what a great gift to your sons too as most newly married couples don't have much to put on that first tree! One of our holiday traditions was that we were allowed to open one present each Christmas eve. It was always a set of PJs to wear to bed so we had festive jammies on for our pictures. I plan to continue this tradition with my little ones.
Susie
My parents gave us one every year, my husband's did for him, and now we do that for our girls. It is a really sentimental thing. I'm with you on the tears!
That is so special, KathySue. I love traditions! Your tree is beautiful and themore ornaments, the better in my opinion. Who gets purse ornaments?...Christine
Oh what beautiful traditions. :) I love your Christmas tree. My tree is filled with many ornaments too. I especially love the ones that my boys have made for me.
Have a wonderful evening.
Sandra
That is absolutely wonderful and so great to hear as I am trying to create traditions for my daughter! What a beautiful tree you have!
Love family Christmas traditions...we do the same with our daughter and it certainly made for a beautiful tree the first year after her marriage!!
Love your tradition and your tree is beautiful!
We started buying our daughter an ornament each year, she is 4 and can't wait to see them from the years past.
FABULOUS tradition and fabulous tree!! Beautiful, thanks for sharing.
PS. OF COURSE you can use that thanksgiving image, can't wait to see your post :)
Nancy xo
I love your tree Kathysue, ours is full of mementos, special ornaments and keepsakes also. I love seeing all the beautifully decorated theme trees every year, but to me nothing is more beautiful than a tree full of precious memories. Have a wonderful Thanksgiving. Hugs, Kat
Absolutely gorgeous!
I adore the traditional look for Christmas~
What a gorgeous tree + thank you for sharing your lovely traditions - so special!
I loved hearing about your traditions! We have some of our own, one that involves running off the school bus, so I could really relate to this. Your tree is amazing and I can not imagine the works (and fun) it takes to decorate it!!!
Your tree is beautiful! Do you all gather together to decorate it or is that your assignment? I love the tradition you carried over to your children and now to their children. You must have a huge ornament collection. How wonderful!!!
Growing up we had a lot of Swedish traditions in our house which included baking a special Swedish bread and cookies. Santa would bring the tree during the night and we would wake up to a beautifully decorated tree in the morning.
Now as an adult I still carry over a lot the the same traditions but Santa no longer brings the tree. Decorating is now my job, and I love it. Taking it down after Christmas makes me always wish Santa would come help!
What a beautiful tradition, Kathysue! I'm sure each ornament holds its own memories, too. And your Christmas spirit is contagious, btw!! Happy Thanksgiving - thanks for being such a great supporter of my blog - I appreciate you so much!!
What a beautiful tradition! My boys have silver sleigh bells they receive each year with their name and the year engraved. They should each have a beautiful collection by the time they are grown.
Love all you do!
xo Elizabeth
What a beautiful tree Kathysue! My husband and I also have amassed many ornaments from our childhood and on. It's fun to go through them each year and remember the memories of each one! Lisa ;-)
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