Snowmen - creepy or otherwise

The other day when we were decorating the tree, Kristin wanted to know where the "creepy snowman" was.  This was the ornament she was talking about.  I knew exactly which one she meant, but as a mom, I don't consider it in the creepy category.      

Now, you may have already guessed that one of my children made this ornament, and you would be right.  It is from 1988, and was made out of bread dough and painted by Ashley, who would have been all of 2 1/2 years old.  This was when we lived in Oregon.  Now, you may or may not know, but the house we lived in in Oregon was OLD!!! (read - poorly insulated)  And you also may or may not know that Oregon is known for its dampish climate.  Those two elements combined did not bode well for our little ornament.  Notice how his stovepipe hat and part of his head are missing?  And the blackish tinge at the top of the hat?  The results of the bad combination I described above.  Luckily, we moved inland, and our climate is much more dry and our house is much better insulated, so no more damage has been incurred.  

This snowman napkin holder was a gift from Trev about 5 or 6 years ago.  He and his dad put it together at a Home Depot workshop.  John loved taking Trev to those, and I think was a little sad when Trev got too old to go.  It was some good father/son bonding time. 

I love this!!  As my kids keep growing, I miss their little selves running around getting all excited about the lights, and the tree and all things Christmas.  I cherish these little keepsakes that remind me of times past.  Christmas has a different feel without little kids.  (Although, I don't think there is much Christmas morning sleeping in yet.)

As such, our Christmas anticipation is a little different.  We look forward to whoever is coming to spend Christmas with us.  This year, Amber, Allison and Ryan all will be here!  We can't wait for them to come.  Of course, we would love it if the whole clan were here, but the Down Under bunch will definitely not make it home.  And unless Chelsie has the baby in the next week or so, which is pretty unlikely, they will not be making the trip through the pass as well.  No doubt, we'll be using Facetime and/or Skype to share our Christmas experiences with those two families.  Let's hear it for modern technology!!

So, as I am reminded often, I just need to move on, and while I am grateful for these little reminders of their smallness, recognize my kids for the great "big" people they have grown up to be, or in a few cases, are growing up to be.