My husband’s parents bought him and his brothers an ornament each year for Christmas. Each ornament always had a special meaning attached to it. Some years it was an instrument played by Jon or one of his brothers. Other years it was symbolic of a memory shared together like the wooden soldier ornament purchased on a family outing to Marshall Fields in Chicago.
As we started dating each other, the ornaments included me in the selection. Jon received ceramic girl and boy figurines the year we started dating. The next year, he received a postage stamp ornament to symbolize all the mail we exchanged during our long distance courtship. And he received two hearts with our names on them the year we married. As we started our family, the ornaments included our children with a gingerbread family or a new baby.
These ornaments meant so much to my husband that we began our own tradition with our children when they were born. Now, our kids each have their set of ornaments with a special meaning for each year. This ornament tradition along with putting up our nativity together are two of the traditions that bring meaning to Christmas for me. I love spending time together, remembering His blessings through the years, and celebrating our ultimate gift of Christmas – Jesus.
