Thankful for MY TREE

With the house emptying out, I was looking forward to putting up our Christmas tree.  The kids love decorating it, though they never last through the entire process.  As we pulled out the ornaments and began hanging them on the tree, I was very thankful for the story behind each one.  

I have ornaments from students I taught years ago and I can remember their faces with each ornament.  I have ornaments from parties and exchanges.  I have ornaments from special friends and as I hang each one I say a little prayer thanking God for the influence they've had on our lives.  I have ornaments from our very first year of marriage when we put up our first tree and had nothing.  Some of my most treasured ornaments are from my Grandma.  When we were little she began collecting an ornament a year for each grandchild.  She was good about writing the name and year on each one.  The first Christmas I was married, she gave me a huge gift bag.  In it was each ornament wrapped up in tissue paper to carry on and use for my tree.  I love these ornaments!  Even though I'm not that old :) some look antique, some look cheesy, some are barely staying together now and some are awesome!  My kids love hanging them and looking at the years..."Mom you were alive in 1983!"  (Well yes, and much earlier than that too)  It's very nostalgic to hang these on the tree.  So I've started the same collection for my children.  Every year they pick out an ornament.  We put their names on them and the year and then each year when we decorate, we make sure they specifically get to hang their own ornaments.  One day when they are grown and married, I will pass them on to help decorate their tree.  They love picking out their ornaments.  Each one tells a little more about each child's personality or interests.  One day my tree will look very different as those ornaments move on to their homes, but for now it is splendid!