Monday, December 08, 2014

Memories on the Tree




On Sunday afternoon we drove to the tree lot. We like natural trees, aka Charlie Brown trees, that are not too dense so that the ornaments hang well and the effect is airy. This year, as well as last, we found our tree at a Gravel Mart. This enterprise does other work throughout the year, but cuts trees for Christmas during December. I asked the fellow when the tree would have been cut. "Two or three days ago," he said. "And I'll be cutting more this week."

This evening we decorated the tree. These ornaments hold memories - the brass bells were purchased in a store in Riobamba in the Andes Highlands many years ago. Others were cross-stitched, crocheted, or crafted by friends and family. Tim and I chose the Noel heart in Leavenworth, WA one year. When the children were at home, we gave them one an ornament each year. They took their ornament box with them when they left home. I'm glad I thought to get some for us as well, or our tree would be completely denuded.

It's hard to believe that we're just two decorating the tree once again. Those years of child-rearing, teenage negotiations, and young adults living at home flew by faster than Santa's sleigh on Christmas Eve. Wonderful years with wonderful memories. These are wonderful years, too, and e create new traditions for the two of us.
  

My grown-up girl's Advent calendar is one of my new traditions. Eight ornaments have been hung. One by one the days pass, full of activity and opportunity. 


A reader asked what ornaments I hang on the calendar - here are a few of them - a vintage earring, a chandelier crystal, a country angel. Felted hearts and simple baubles. More memories in the making.

Do you keep the same traditions year after year? Have you added any recently

edited to add: Maggie pointed out that word verification is turned on here, however, upon checking my settings I see that it shouldn't be. I'll look into the matter later on, for now, I'm out the door to teach French. Anyone else having this issue?

25 comments:

  1. Your advent calendar is lovely what a great way to countdown the days. I add one or two new baubles/ornaments each year but stay with a traditional theme that we both enjoy.
    BTW blogger seems to have added word verification to our blogs and I'm struggling to get it off again!

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  2. yes we hold to traditions year after year - even here in hot summer Australia we cook a roast dinner & Christmas pudding for Christmas lunch! I have decorations that I bring out each year for Christmas. Some of them certainly hold special memories.
    Have a lovely week, and thank you for stopping by my blog.

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  3. Anonymous4:15 AM

    For the past twelve years or so we had a wonderful decorating tradition. The grandkids came for a sleepover on Thanksgiving night, and we decorated the next day. So much fun and such good memories were made. But, the grands are teens now and this is the first year we've decorated on our own. As you said, new traditions. :-)

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  4. For years I have used an artificial tree. I had to buy a new one and the workmanship just isn't there. So I may be returning to a fresh tree next year. Yours looks lovely and no doubt smells fresh and piney. You made me long for a fresh tree.

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  5. I like your idea of airy tree. Some trees, especially faux ones are so thick (like ours) that you can barely hang any ornaments on it! Love your advent calendar! Did you make it up yourself? It is really fun and I like your assortment of daily tags. Have a great day.

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  6. I like your advent calendar!

    We do keep traditions, a daily advent reading of the Christmas story, a trip or two to see the light display at a local place, a real tree.

    No new traditions this year, so far! But you never know!

    Deanna

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  7. One thing I love about Christmas are the strong traditions. Year after year, we go to the woods one two days before the Christmas Eve to cut the tree. (We always try to choose a nice-looking one that however wouldn't have enough space for growing in the future.)
    We decorate the tree on the 24th, in the early afternoon, using the same ornaments as every year. We don't use real candles at the moment, but since we still have the old candle holders, I hope to restart using them.
    Unfortunately we don't have the oldest baubles (of my childhood) anymore, since our cats, of course, loved to drop them down and chase them around the living room.
    Thank you for the lovely post!

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  8. Hi Lorrie, what a beautiful collage of your ornaments. I get very sentimental when trimming the tree every year, since many of the ornaments are from my childhood, as well as my daughter's, and they bring back such sweet memories. My goodness, time does fly.

    Hope you are enjoying your day.

    Poppy
    P.S. Yes, your word verification is still on

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  9. Love your advent calendar! I like things to stay the same...and so do my kids. But over the years things have changed! This year we are not having a live tree...and I'm OK with that. :)

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  10. Love the little peek into your tree . . . especially the bells, signifying the ringing out of the wonderful message.

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  11. I love your traditions - we have many similar ones. It does seem like the years with our kids skidded by awfully fast - though full of love and memories and now our grandsons are already 13, 10 and 3.

    I've noticed that every blog has the number verification - every single one that I read - something blogger do no doubt.

    It is just the two of us decorating again and it is such fun (and new memories) to enjoy this time together.

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  12. Strange goings on with Blogger today I have noticed...I'll be sending a photo of one of them via email.

    Some things are traditions...the Nativity is always out, but I tend to rotate other Christmas things through the years. No room for it all and I like new ideas. Truth is, some things get lost from one year to the next.

    Hope that you had a happy day teaching.

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  13. Anonymous4:37 PM

    Elizabeth in England was talking about Blogger putting word notifications on her blog, too, without asking. I see a couple words I need to type in here, too. Love the idea of an adult advent calendar. We are in an all adult stage right now in our family as we have no grandchildren yet...

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  14. Although our original tree decorations have been passed on to our girls, some of the other decor has been around for years and is put out each Christmas.
    I like the idea of an advent calendar with special treasures to mark off the days.
    We all seem to have word verification lately, a glitch perhaps.

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  15. I love your Advent calendar idea - it's so pretty Lorrie. Your tree will be stunning I know.

    Yes, I still have a few older tree ornaments but have given most of them back to the kids and their kids now - they asked for them! Jasmin and her mom wanted our remaining Dicken's Village ceramic houses - 13 total - this year and, as we are too lazy to crawl back in the attic to get them out each year now, we were happy to give them away so they can enjoy.

    I seem to change my decor every year - getting more into natural items mixed with things things I already have around the house as I like to expand the French/Nordic look for the season. I bought very little to decorate with this year and quite honestly can see it getting less in the coming years. Did buy live fir wreaths for outside - they smell so good!

    Hugs - Mary

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  16. I so love the memories that are on a Christmas tree!

    (Word verification is here, there, and everywhere! And tonight I cannot even open my own blog! Hope these glitches are corrected quickly...)

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  17. Lorrie, so much to read over here! Finally I decided to tidy up my links and adding those which are missing... so I will be able to pop by more often. If not to comment, at least to read! :)
    I am in love with your Advent calendar, and you inspire me to make one for us as well. I have always seen those all decked, and never thought of adding one ornament each day... it is truly charming.
    We have many old and some new traditions! This year, after trying the "real" trees last year, and it was a huge mess, I'm very happily back to artificial ones. Ours have lots of memories attached, and I find them beautiful. The smell is provided by the fresh branches cut in the woods and kept into vases around the house.
    xo

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  18. Most 'Fresh' trees are half dead by the time people buy them...yours is truly fresh and I can only imagine that your home must smell like Christmas heaven!

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  19. I love your calendar! Each year I hang ornaments on our tree and they bring back memories. Some are ones my mom or dad made (both are gone now) and some were made by grandkids. Love the memories they evoke.

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  20. Anonymous1:47 PM

    Lorrie, I love your big girl's advent calendar. What a wonderful idea! This year, Christmas is a little different. No tree as we are still unpacking. I did choose a few Christmas items to decorate with and I am hoping to make a few as well.

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  21. Love the advent calendar. A few years ago we went to a much smaller tree on a table, which I have really loved. It is so much easier to decorate. I saved so many ornaments for my children, but they haven't wanted them. Hopefully now with my grandson, my daughter may change her mind.

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  22. We give our kids an ornament each every year too! I wanted our kids to have really nice ornaments for their first trees. I remember having to buy all of our ornaments for our first tree. We couldn't afford to buy very nice ones.

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  23. I've relaxed considerably on traditions over the past decade, and I'm currently evaluating how I feel about that. . . for me, though, it's been the way to preserve what's most important about the season, even though I've been sad to let some traditions lapse, at least in the exactitude of their execution, shall we say . . . I love your advent calendar!

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Thank you for your comment. I read and value each one, cherishing the connections we can make although far apart. Usually, I visit your blog in return, although if you ask a question I try to contact you directly.

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