How wonderful it is that so many people around the world take joy in celebrating Christmas. I love knowing we all join together to commemorate this amazingly special time of year, remembering the birth of Jesus Christ, which took place over two thousand years ago.
It is such a special and magical time of year with all the traditions, sights, sounds, and fragrances of the Christmas season.
All of us can thank the beautiful country of Germany for beginning the very first Christmas tree tradition back in the 16th century. Back then the first trees were decorated with edible items such as gingerbread, apples, and sweets. Over the years the custom of decorating brightly-lit Christmas trees has spread, and is now celebrated all over the world at this special time of year.
Each year as I decorate our Christmas tree I am reminded of this pretty Christmas song:
O Christmas Tree
O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
How lovely are your branches.
O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
How richly God has dressed thee.
Oh Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
Of all the trees most lovely
Each year you bring to me delight
Gleaming in the Christmas night.
O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
Such pleasure you do bring me.
O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
No one alive spreads cheer so well.
O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
You'll ever be unchanging.
The above photo shows a daytime view of our decorated Christmas tree this year. Each year we tell ourselves we are going to get a smaller tree, but somehow that just does not happen.
It is a special time decorating the tree with all of the decorations that bring back memories from so many years ago.
Our daughter Stephanie gave us this home-made tree decoration, seen in the below photo. It is a photo of our grandson Dillon just shortly before he turned two. As you can see the date is 1995. He is now 21.
And as you can see in the below photo, she made cut-outs of both of Dillon's hands and a foot, pasted them together forming a reindeer-like decoration.
When she first gave this to us, there was a little red pom-pom nose representing Rudolph, of course. That nose fell off years ago and I really need to replace it with a new little red pom-pom.
A Christmas tree ornament treasure.
If you have ever visited Sweet Southern Days in the past you know how I love to take pictures. For a birthday gift my sweet husband gave me a Canon 5D Mark III camera with a Canon 24-70mm L-Series lens. I LOVE this camera. It has capabilities way beyond my knowledge and maybe one day I will learn more of how to use it. Right now I am content to put the settings on "automatic" and snap away.
In the below photo is another very special Christmas tree decoration we have had for many years. This particular decoration was made in elementary school by our daughter Debi. It is over 35 years old, but still looks like new.
We always go to our local Tallahassee Nurseries to find our Christmas tree, because they have a very nice selection of beautiful freshly-cut North Carolina trees. They always go to the extra effort of placing the tree on our tree-stand, which is a great help to my husband. Then they also place the tree on your vehicle and securely tie it in place.
The below photo is an online photo of Tallahassee Nurseries entrance all decorated for Christmas.
Many years ago a friend gave me the pattern to make the cute Santa ornament seen in the below photo. I have had this cute Santa for over 35 years and he is always placed front and center on the Christmas tree to remind us of when the children were so little.
Santa was very easy to make ... Using white, pink and red felt I cut two of each felt piece, glued them together and placed a little gold ric-rack to use as trim for Santa's hat. Then I cut some of the gold ric-rack to use as a hanger, cut and pasted the eyes, nose and lips ... And, that's it!
The Gingerbread Man was a favorite story book with the children when they were little. So many many years ago when this pattern came across my path I made several of these cloth calico Gingerbread Men to use as Christmas tree ornaments.
If interested you could use a large cookie cutter as a pattern, cut two pieces of your favorite fabric, sew ric-rack trim to the front of one piece of the pattern, sew inside out leaving a small space for turning and then turn and stuff with a little polyester filling. Hand sew the opening. Cut out eyes, nose, buttons and bow tie from a black felt square. There, he is all finished ... But, be careful, don't let him run away.
Yes, as seen in the below photo is another homemade tree decoration from many years ago. This little quilted wreath decoration was made from a kit found in one of the craft stores many years ago.
And another calico cloth candy cane Christmas ornament. It too was extremely easy to make following the same directions as for the Gingerbread Man, using the candy cane shape.
Santa in the below photo is a wooden tree ornament painted by the children many years ago.
And another hand crocheted tree ornament, again made many years ago.
And below again we see another felt snowman ornament hand-made from a craft kit many years ago.
Other Christmas tree decorations we treasure are the hand-made wood turned ornaments made by a special friend. He makes one of these amazing ornaments every year for our tree.
The below wooden ornament is very unusual. Inside the wood opening of this wood turned ornament made by our friend, is a very small little green painted Christmas tree.
A closer look.
And another pretty hand-painted glass tree ornament from a Garden Club friend.
And one of our favorite ornaments on our Christmas tree is this special
ornament from our daughter Sharon and family.
O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
How lovely are your branches.
O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree
How richly God has dressed thee.
A night time view of our Christmas tree.
Well! In just a week from today Santa arrives and leaves gifts for all the good boys and girls under the Christmas tree. Don't forget to place Santa's cookies and milk under the tree!
We hope that wherever you are in this big huge world that you too are enjoying this magical time of year and celebrating the miracle that happened over two thousand years ago.
Merry Christmas blessings to you and yours wherever you may be.
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