Collections

Nov222014

My Favorite Santa

Laura and I both have Santa Collections, though different.  Years ago I decided to try and decorate a tree with only Santa Ornaments because my Mom gave me my favorite ornament from when I was a child.

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I was so pleased to get this little guy and he is always the first ornament I hang on the tree every year.  You can’t tell that much from this photo, but he is worn in places and definitely looks old.  I love that part.

So I started collecting Santa ornaments and with collections sometimes, I ended up with some Santas that I did not like that much.  Then my daughter came along and, at first, I tried to continue the Santa theme with her annual ornament.

IMGP6303Nantucket 1998

IMGP6309 NYC 2000 something

But as she got older, I wanted ornaments that reminded us of the year that was just passing, so the Santa theme sort of came to an end so I could get ornaments that would allow us to remember years passed.

IMGP6304   Trip to China in 2007

IMGP6299 4th Grade sailing Trip

IMGP6315 Years of Karate

IMGP6308 Trip to Italy 2004

I still like my Santa ornaments, but I love pulling out the ornaments every year and re-living the memories they are meant to inspire. I love anything the refreshes memories.  I love the ornaments, I love my photographs, I love the antiques and other items in my house that are from my childhood.  I know that my daughter will probably not have the same warm feelings about all of these items that I have kept, but I hope she keeps some of them and that they bring back good memories of her childhood.

They are all getting ready to be pulled out of storage and put on the tree again this year.  I think this year we will go to Winter Park and cut down a Charlie Brown tree with a permit.  I love the Charlie Brown trees because the limbs are so far apart, your ornaments really show, plus it is a fun day of driving to Winter Park, traipsing through the woods to find a tree and then having a pizza lunch at Hernandos.  Another memory in the making….

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Nov222014

The Favorite Santa

In 1981 my sister-in-law gave me my first Santa.

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The following year my daughter, who was seven years old at the time, wanted to add to my collection – if you can call one Santa a collection.  In November, 1982, we went to her elementary school holiday craft sale.  She found the perfect Santa, that was in her budget and proudly purchased it.

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At Christmas that year I opened my gift from her which was a very special Santa for a couple of reasons.  I found out after I opened the gift that she had indeed purchased the Santa that day, but promptly dropped and broke it.  She was heartbroken and headed back to the artist to tell her sad story.  The creator of the Santa was in the holiday spirit and sold her the second Santa for half price. Now, however, she is over her budget because of the extra expense of the second Santa. The above photo is my Santa.

My collection has grown over the years with some very nice and sometimes expensive Santas, but the Santa bought at the elementary school holiday craft sale by my seven-year-old daughter is my favorite and always will be. Seeing the excitement on her face when I opened that special Santa, that she had to sacrifice extra money for, is forever in my memory.

I am still adding to my collection, but nothing will replace this Santa given from the heart from my precious daughter.

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And then there is my son.  He decided to begin a collection of holiday treasures that poop candy. Now, he has given me many nice Santas over the years, but he is especially proud of the plastic ones that make obnoxious noises and then poop candy. Isn’t that special?!

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