O Christmas Tree, O Christmas Tree

As promised, here is a photo of my Christmas tree. C'est fini! (I think I remembered my French correctly). I finally stopped decorating it! The story behind that statement as follows:
Our first house was tiny, so our tree was always tiny. Our next house was larger, but we didn't plan to stay there so we kept using the tiny tree. Now we're settled in another house and I took the plunge and bought a 7.5 foot tree after Christmas last year on clearance. It's amazing how many ornaments fit on this tree and how much ribbon I used going round and round the tree!

I realize I'm not going to like this larger tree when it's time to take the tree down! Just when you think you've got them all, another ornament shows up stuck somewhere between the branches. I think they hide, dodging you as you walk around hunting high and low for them. The ornaments wait until you pack the last box away and then, VOILA! they pop out, snickering at you!

Here is one of my homemade ornaments, a drum circa 1974. I made these with my Nana when I was a wee tot. Nana is currently in her 90's and sadly, not quite all there anymore. It's made from a toilet paper tube, covered with felt and trimmed with sequins, beads, and trim. The drumsticks are made from toothpicks and beads, painted gold. It was a fun project and a memory I'll cherish for years to come (until I get squirrely and can't remember things anymore either--not looking forward to that part of aging!).