How lovely are your branches....

This past Sunday (before my boy got sick), after a glorious first day of skiing at the mountain, the boys asked to decorate our tree.  So, the bin came down from the attic...and the sentiment "It's just like Christmas" popped into my head as I pulled off the plastic lid to reveal our ornaments.

A sea of blues, greens, silvers and golds.

Heavenly.

While Fran cut us down the perfect tree, the boys helped by gently taking out each ornament and laying them on the rug.

When Fran and I built our house, my mom gave me all of my ornaments from my childhood.  It took a lot for her to part with them, but I think that deep down she knew how much that they would mean to me when I had my own tree.

She was right.

I really love every ornament that I have.

They each tell their own story.

A heart that Mom gave to me when Fran and I were first married.

A little pony that I remember petting the tail and mane of every year when I put it on the tree.

My Gram always gave the best ornaments.  Every year one would be tied to a present under the tree.  Personalized and adorable.  She really had an eye. She gave me this little horse when I was the same age as Eben is now.

A silver Rudolph from when I was 4.

And a little baby in the most beautiful leather papoose.  Peeking out from around her fur bunting. The sweetest little souvenir from one of my Gram's many trips to Alaska.

Of them all, SHE is my most treasured.

Then there are the ones that I have accumulated on my own over the years.  

Big beaded globes.

2 dozen glitter dusted balls in shades of blue, silver and green.

 

And delicate glass bulbs painted with the prettiest snow flakes.

They are the ornaments that Fran and I decorated our first apartment tree with.

It is finally topped off with a wooden star, the whitest lights that I could find, and some silver garland.

Our Christmas tree never fails to jump start the holiday spirit in the whole family.

And it really does have lovely branches.