One Christmas tradition from my childhood that I will always hold near to my heart is the decorating of the tree. Once the lights have been untangled, it's everyone's favourite bit, right? Something even more special, that I've decided to adopt for my own now that I've left home, is purchasing a Christmas tree ornament for every place we visit.
When I was little, my mum would always try to find a Christmas ornament wherever we went, meaning she has now accumulated a great load of decorations for her extremely large Christmas tree. Our little 6ft Asda tree is significantly less extravagant, but it still means a lot. The original story behind the tree is that when we first moved into our house I came home from work to find that all the furniture had been put up, all the clothes were away, and this tree was standing in the living room, fully decorated by my boyfriend and parents.
So I thought I'd share with you (because it is Christmas, after all), a little tour of my tree and the memories it holds.
Teddy and Duck - How super cute is this? It's a duck and a teddy snuggling! I can't quite remember where this one came from, but I'm pretty sure it was bought/given to my parents when I was born.
Baby Winnie the Pooh - Probably my favourite decoration when I was little, considering I demanded that my mama didn't put it away for the remainder of the year and instead let me keep it in the my toy box. I literally used to play with this one like it was a real toy. I was always gentle though, so he's still here to tell the tale.
Eeyore on a Snowflake & Jiminy Cricket - Both given to me by my mama, they were purchased in Disney World on various holidays. Eeyore was always one of my favourite decorations growing up. Sadly, Jiminy used to sit atop a beautiful glass bauble which smashed when it was being moved one time. I think he still looks lovely though.
Mickey, Donald, Goofy and Pluto - Believe it or not, these gorgeous hand painted decorations were from Christmas crackers! I suppose once upon a time they actually had good things inside. One Christmas I cracked one open to find Goofy inside, and the rest followed shortly after. I wish more than anything I could find crackers like these again.
Harrods Westie - This is actually the first Christmas ornament that Ollie and I ever bought together. He's from the Christmas Shop in Harrods and it didn't take me long to pick him out and take him to the till. He's pretty much perfect.
We Believe - This soft ornament was bought for me by my mama to celebrate our first Christmas in our new home. I think it's meant to be about believing in Santa, but I like to think it's about believing in love.
Sorcerer Mickey and Lady and the Tramp - These two are up there with my favourites, I think. Ollie and I bought them on our first Disney World holiday in May, where I spent a good half an hour trying to decide which ones to buy. Sorcerer Mickey is one of our favourite incarnations of Mickey Mouse, and I always imagine Lady and the Tramp as the dog versions of Ollie and me...in a good way!
The Vatican Bauble - I bought this when we went to Rome back in July. I had originally bought one from the same shop two years earlier for my mama's tree and somehow I managed to find it again so I could get one for myself.
Peter Rabbit Bauble - This one was bought in the Lake District in August when we visited for our two year anniversary. It's from the gift shop at Beatrix Potter's house.
So there you have it, from past to present, a tour of my Tree of Memories. I will treasure these ornaments always so that every Christmas when it comes to decorating the tree, I can always remember some of the happiest moments of my life.
Let me know some of your Christmas traditions in the comments.
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