O Christmas Tree.

I saved this picture from last years December Cottage Living because I loved the pink and chartreuse color scheme so much. As we prepare to go get our tree this morning, I am faced with the decorating process. As much as I love the look of themed trees such as this one (clearly a California tree, as they used live flowers as ornaments-click on the image for larger view), I grew up with a tree full of ornaments with a story. Every year when we would get the dusty boxes of decorations out, each one we’d pull out would conjure up specific memories. We each had a favorite (mine was simple, delicate white porcelain reindeer), some had dates on them from Christmases past and some were brand new. But the mish-mosh of styles, colors and eras made for a tree that represented our family history. So, as much as I want a pink and chartreuse tree-with matching wrapping paper gifts underneath, I’ll be following the Tubridy family tradition that I’ve started with Andrew and put up our small, but growing, collection of ornaments from our life together. And hopefully someday our child will have a favorite to put on it too.

Tip: To add some element of a “theme” to a collection tree like ours, buy solid round glass bulb ornaments on one or two colors, I’m going with red and silver, and tie ribbons of that color (red or silver) on the ends of the branches. This will highlight the array of different ornaments while making it look pulled together!