A New Family Tradition

A few years ago I bought some shatter proof ornaments- they served us well all through J's toddler-hood. Little B on the other hand is much more destructive. And so I decided to start a new tradition- since our ornaments were dwindling in number, we would just buy a few more each year, that way by the time all the old were gone we would have a whole tree full of ornaments that have special meaning to us!

So I took the boys shopping, J picked out this train- with a happy little engineer who LOVES ice cream- I think that this ornament perfectly depicts the life J dreams of having some day.

 A story to go along with this ornament- J bought this ornament with his own money, he paid for it and was asked if he wanted it wrapped in paper or if he just wanted to hold it, he chose the second option. Within seconds he had dropped it and the two front wheels and the ice cream cone broke off. It was the only one of it's kind at hobby lobby and he couldn't find another ornament he wanted so we decided to keep it and I was able to super glue it back together. I'm glad that we chose to keep this ornament. Hopefully it will help us remember that sometimes we break but with love and patience we can be put back together.

I wouldn't let B out of the cart at the store, I was planning on pushing him along the aisle so he could see the ornaments but while I was looking for one for myself J picked out this beautiful cow ornament for his brother.

 I was about to put the ornament back when J showed it to B and his reaction proved to me that it was the perfect ornament for my little 2 year old- "COW!" he screamed. And here is the reason why. The boys have been telling knock knock jokes- J almost understands that there needs to be a punchline- most of his punchlines have something to do with dirty diapers. B on the other hand just seems to shout out random words, BUT he has come up with one knock knock joke that he tells quite frequently- probably because the very first time he told it Ken and I laughed pretty heartily. "Knock, Knock. Who's there? Cow. Cow who? DINNER!" We thought it was amazing. So this ornament will forever commemorate B's knock knock joke.

My sister Jenette is starting an ornament tradition as well, she plans to give her nieces and nephews an ornament each year for Christmas. These next two are the boys from this year- Penguins are big favorites for our little family.

This first one is J's.

This one is little B's. Jenette said that she chose this for B because of the little tuft of penguin hair that stuck out on top.......

....oddly enough I bought this little giraffe for B because of the little tuft of hair on top of it's head......

.....I wonder why tufts of hair remind us of B? Well, to be completely honest, I don't have to wonder- This is B at about 10 months old. I love this picture- I call him my little "Tufty"

Now, onto my ornament. I wanted an angel. At first I was looking for two little angels- to remember the two pregnancies I lost this year BUT as I pondered it, I don't truly feel like I have lost any babies, I've just had a postponement of the time when I will be able to carry those little babies and eventually meet them. And so when I found this ornament I knew it was for me.

It's called "Angel of the Heart" and it has the little post script of  "For those who love and are loved".  This ornament reminds me of my little angels who have yet to be held in my arms but who I always hold in my heart.

Ken hasn't found his ornament yet BUT I am 99.9% sure it will look something like this.

image from championsondisplay.com

And I haven't told him yet but I'm okay if he wants to get an ornament to commemorate the Giants 2010 World Series Championship as well.

So that is our new ornament tradition. I hope that it turns out to be a fun tradition for our little family. Maybe when our kids grow up and have homes and families of their own I will give them their ornaments complete with the stories that go along with the.

I love Christmas. More about Christmas will come in another post soon!