I know many of you have probably taken down your Christmas tree by now. If not, maybe you are doing it this weekend, as Ephiany was yesterday. What is Ephiany you may ask. It is actually the twelfth day of Christmas. (Did you know that the 12 Days of Christmas actually begin on Christmas Day?) Our tree always comes down sometime after Ephiany. We always have a live tree, so it tends to dictate when it is ready to come down & I always try to get as much out of it as I can. I am leaving it up 1 more week so it will be coming down next weekend. I so enjoy sitting in the dark and just looking at my tree, it makes me sad when that has to come to an end.
There are many people that enjoy creating theme trees at Christmas and I think they are absolutely beautiful. I hope one day to be able to have the space to have more that one tree (lord knows I have enough ornaments) so that I can create a few themed trees. As of right now, I just have room for one, but that one tree is so incredible special to me! There are always so many ornaments that stand out to me, but I wanted to take a moment here at the end of the holiday season to share a few of them with you.
Our family's tree tells such a story. It includes so many very special ornaments. There is a fond memory attached to each and every ornament, and I take special care to find the perfect place to hang each one.
Our tree includes ornaments that my mother made when she and my father were first married and could not afford many decorations; ornaments from when my husband and I got married; ornaments, like this sweet cardinal to remind us of loved ones that are no longer with us.
Our tree includes ornaments I made as a child as well as ornaments made by my children when they were small. It includes ornaments from my grandparents & great-grandparents (both my mother & fathers parents). It includes ornaments given to me as a child and those given to our children.
Our tree includes ornaments that symbolize family. I love this one with a hand painted snow family, including my husband, me and all 4 of our girls. It also includes the ornaments that we have given our girls each year, like this cute little octopus.
Our tree includes ornaments given to us by loved ones far away that we do not see often, but hold near and dear to our hearts.
I hope you all have had a wonderful holiday season. Wishing you all a safe and healthy 2023!!