Ornaments and some Christmam-y-ness

Yes this is our tree this year. We went with blue tinsel this year. My Mom made the...thing that goes around the bottom!!LOL!

These are some of my FAVE Christmas ornaments! And ones I put up EVERY year! All pics are clickable.

This is the Koala Bear, celebrating our pride in being Australian. It must be from my Grandma, because I don't remember NOT putting this up, and she LOVED koala bears being FROM there.

My Mom made special ornaments a few years ago for her Gifts from the Heart. Knowing how I feel and felt about Grandpa, she made it with one of my fave pics of the 2 of us when I was younger. That big headed doll is Huggins, my Hugga-Bunch doll, I have her in my hope chest.

I just love this one BECAUSE. I love the glass bubble, it shows different colors in the light, and it makes me remember Grandpa's cherry cigar tobacco.

My Mom made these a different year for Gifts of the heart. We each got an ornament with a picture of us with Max, we adore him THAT much. Another year she got us return address labels with his pic on them! I LOVE mine...and have rarely used them, so precious!

Not the best pic, but it is Santa sleeping in an armchair, i just love this ornament. Last year his hook fell off but using scotch tape Sandy fixed him for me. :)

This is one of MANY of my Mom's hand-made decorations. The first few years after marrying Dad she made all sorts of different ones. She WAS a seamstress, so they are cute! She made mice and Frosty and Santa and Mrs. Claus,etc. Some look pretty bad now....4 kids! But they are treasured!!

This I think I made in Primary when I was 4. It is my thumbprint turned into a Santa face.Go Awwww, LOL.

I had talked about how 1 year I painted plaster statues for the fam and except for 1 statue, no I did not go look for them and take pics. I did take pics of some of the Christmas ones I have done. We used to have a craft store that carried these bigger ones every year, for reasonable prices too, and most light up too. But then they closed and for that one year I did special ones, I had to send away for them. Expensive AND they did not include paints. Luckily I have acrylics and bought some of the glaze stuff to set them ( I hope forever!!Eeeesh!). So here are some of my Christmas statues I have painted.

This one is againt the wall of the mantle, it has a light that makes it look like the room is lit up. The reindeer were so bloody hard, since I painted the SNOW first...aye the brown got everywhere....thank goodness for touch-ups!

This Santa light up too, though my Mom just like him sitting there now. This one is 3 dimensional, as are the rest, so it goes all the way around, it was fun to paint because there are a dog and a cat hiding behind the tree.

Ehh not the best photo. It has a warm light to make it look hot inside the gingerbread house but my Mom prefers it as a statue. My fave part is the faux hershey kisses on top.Mmmm.

This is Frosty, yes he CAN have a light, Mom likes him on the dining room table though.

This WAS a Gift from the Heart. The Snowman heating his rump...yes the candle is missing, must put one in the groove that is there. He was my G.O.T.Hear for my Mom that year. Underneath is the special message just for her.

This is a closeup of his rear so you can SEE I made his bum pinkish and toasty, LOL!


One year I handpainted these ornaments, but never made them into actual hanging ornaments, so Mom uses the ones I felt turned out nice, like Santa up there, and puts them in our curio cabinet.

What about your houses, what decorations or ornaments are your faves? We are VERY decked out. We have decorations from the :

VERY OLD (this was Pop's my Mom's Dad)

To the VERY dear (My Mom made this Advent calendar, and I don't remember ever having Christmas without it!)

To newer loved decorations we can grow attached to in the years to come! My Mom made the stocking, replacing the ones she made when we were all born. I have my older one hanging in my room, I am that attached. Of course the stockings can't go here this year. :( The new pellet stove sticking OUT of the fireplace makes it a hazzard. And there is poinsetts with evergreen garland lights up this year, otherwise, exactly the same!

* Please do not steal any of the home-made designs/ideas. I would hate to regret sharing them with you, especially my Mom's designs, only to have a cherished idea stolen without permission! Please.