The Last Day: A Longstanding Tradition

This ornament is one of the oldest that I own. It came from Bronner's and is a huge family tradition.

During the time when my siblings and I all lived at home we each had one. As we moved out, got married, etc we were given our ornaments to take with us. This has got to be my favorite. It's the original one I was given all those years ago. They don't make 'em like this anymore. It's beautiful and has kept it's look great.

I've since continued the tradition with my family. My mom made sure Steve had an ornament with his name on it. And as we had our children we went to Bronner's and ordered theirs'.

I hope one day that my children look at this simple tradition and appreciate it just a little bit. It means a lot to me to see these ornaments. At my mom and dad's house even the dog has her own (courtesy of Melissa). This year one of the hardest things I did was decorate the tree at my parent's house with my dad. The very hardest ornaments to put up were the ones with their names. But Dad did and the tree looks great with the "Stan" and "Carrie" ornaments given a place of prominence on it.

They are more than just ornaments. Each little decoration has a story to go along with it. I hope I pass enough of the story onto my children.