O, Christmas Tree

Today while I was at work, my mum and dad assembled our Christmas tree (yes, it's fake). When I got home, they told me that they saved putting the ornaments on for me! Yaay!

Yeah, I kinda love my Instagram app. Here is our lovely tree! With present already under it, too. The majority of our ornaments are handmade or vintage, so it brings back amazing memories every year when we decorate. So I took a couple pictures of my favourite ornaments!

My mum embroidered this one when I was about 6 or 7. We have a set of four of them, each one looking slightly different than the other. We also have a set of Santa Clauses!

This is another one made my my mum, but when she was a little girl. She was a girl scout and they made these little Lifesaver rag dolls as a fundraiser. Her next door neighbor bought a bunch of them, I think maybe 15, and years later when my mum was all grown up, her neighbor gave them all back to her for Christmas! I think they're absolutely adorable and one of my favourite sets to hang up.

The last ornament I took a photo of is one that my parents bought me when I was little after we adopted my dog, Buddy. We had found him running through a parking lot, scared and emaciated. We took him home, fed him, and I begged my parents to let us keep him. We did, and had him for a good 11 or 12 years. My mum was out shopping one day and found an ornament of a black dog, bought it, took it home and told me to paint on Buddy's markings. While it's always been one of my favourites, it became bittersweet to see after we had to put him down last year due to old age. It's becoming a tradition to have him be the first ornament to hang up, and the last to take down.

How is your decorating coming along? What are some of your traditions you celebrate each year?