One of my favorite parts of Christmas
is getting a tree.
From the time I can remember,
my parents loaded us into a suburban borrowed from my dad's work,
we took the 2 hour drive to my Great Grandparents' house in Enterprise,
we cut down the tree,
got a milkshake in St. George,
and drove home.
When we moved to Iowa when I was 12 years old,
my dad still found a place to cut down a tree.
The tradition continues to this day.
My husband and I did 2 years of a "fake" tree,
because fire code in our apartment didn't allow for real trees.
But when we moved to California, I returned to my roots :)
Sadly, there aren't place in the OC to chop down your own tree,
but there are nice places that sell them already chop,
and every year since we moved here, we've sought them out.
There's a cute little lot in Wtown that we love,
but it's a bit of a drive now, so we chose Home Depot this year
and I loved it!
There are lots to choose from
and perfectly priced!
And I loved that they came wrapped - so much easier to transport.
My tree is already a sentimental tree.
First are the gorgeous snowflakes.
The story is that my Great Grandma Nelson made them
and my mom begged her to make her some.
However, by then my Great Grandma already had A LOT of grandkids
and she wanted to be fair and she knew she couldn't make them for everyone.
so she told my mom no.
But my mom persisted.
And she got some.
They were also some of my favorite ornaments.
Well, a couple year ago, my mom gave each of her kids a set.
They are gorgeous and I love them.
I should start now making them for my own children to have their own set one day :)
Next are my
German Paper Stars - or
Froebel Stern.
My Grandpa Meyer is of full German heritage
and his mother made these gorgeous stars.
However, she passed away without passing on the tradition.
So my Aunt found a German woman that taught her.
And one year, my Mom & Dad gave us all a set.
I love them!
And I love with both the snowflakes & the stars,
my Mom included a picture and a story behind the tradition.
Some of my other favorite ornaments are
a handmade set made for me by
Tasha's mom
one Christmas.
My Eddie Walker Snowman ornaments . . . they are hard to find now.
And my love bugs :)
These were made by my dear friend "Bunn" from college.
We used to throw awesome parties together
and one year we did a white elephant gift exchange.
She ended up with a "build your own scorpion" bead set
that my husband and I bought at the $1 store.
So, she made them and tagged them and gave them to us.
I love them and everyone always ask, "Why do you have a scorpion on your tree?"
What's on your tree?
Why is it special to you?
What's the story behind it?
Share and link up!
I just loved how this project turned out.
I loved making this bag and it made a great handmade gift!
How could I not include this most RAD post ever.
I seriously adore hosting a cookie exchange.
I don't get too "deep" on this blog very often,
I'm so glad that I posted about this labor of love,
I truly love throwing parties.
It was my first (and almost my last) tutorial.
I love this bunting!
