Martha: Out Voted

Every year, I get this picture in my head of what this year's perfect Christmas tree should look like. Every time I stroll past a cover of Martha Stewart Living Magazine, I get little bursts of inspiration: Color scheme, things to do with ribbon, florals - whatever. Last year, I even went so far as to purchase an on sale lot of MarthaStewart glittery Christmas balls in purple, hot pink, silver, and pewter:I was going to do a royal purple tree - with purple roses (live...), purple ribbons, purple stemmy-things and the glitter balls...
However, the same thing happens to me as happens every year. I get these great ideas, but then - when I retrieve my Christmas decorations from the attic, I get all holiday-mushy. In those boxes are a collection of precious family memories - handmade ornaments, gifts, things that remind me of good friends - and all the stuff that gets Martha out voted time and time again (this year, I almost went out and bought all orange and red ornaments to match my new dining room... I'm not gonna do it. See for yourself:
This was carved by my father - I have a lot of these - but you get the idea. I can't not hang them on a tree!
This one was painted by my mother during my "I love snowmen" phase (I still love Snowmen - but as this is the ultimate snowman, I don't feel the need to add to the collection any longer):
And speaking of ultimate Snowmen, this is the last craft project Jason and I ever did together. When I unwrapped him today, well - it was a nice moment:
The next few were made by my grandmother - These are the things that remind me of the beautiful side of one cranky and tough-minded woman:
This one is especially fun to me -as Grandma couldn't find any extra ribbon to tie the hanger on with - so she used a rubber band... I can't get myself to fix it.
My other grandmother used to hang this on her tree every year... Wait, let me rephrase that. This ornament hung on the tree that she kept decorated and just covered up and stored in the basement from January through the end of November:
My favorite part of the tree is the star. My father made me this after I complained that he gave my family's traditional Christmas tree star to my sister (proving once again, that I wasn't his favorite... sigh) - I like this one just as much, if not more:
Then, there are the series of Christmas tree ornaments that just make me laugh. This one is from my mother - and is part of a larger series of "Weird Things People Who Work For Urologists Receive." One of the drug reps gave her this - and she gave it to me, because I would be the only one to ever really appreciate it:
This one I originally bought for my friend, Karen. I liked it so much I had to go out and buy another - so I could keep one of them:
This is another one I purchased - although I didn't mean to... A friend got this for me as a gift - and the moment I opened it, I dropped it and shattered it... So I ran out and bought a replacement. I have such guilt!
This one came from Germany, brought to me by my friend Mark. When you do as it says - where it says (push me), it yodels. This was the first year that Dave saw this... He just laughed and laughed:
Then there's the peace sign, painted by my friend Donna. It's from a roof slate from the chapel of the camp we used to work at:
Then there are the armadillos - This one is my favorite because it's just so goofy:
Then there are a few from my childhood - Which means it's getting old...
Here's another one my Dad made. It's so cute - and one of the first things he did when he learned how to carve:
My mom painted this one...
I have two of these - my aunt made them, and they're just so cool.
And - just to seal the deal that I'm not doing a Martha Stewart tree, I bought two new ornaments this year - This one marks Dave's and my first Christmas in our house. I'm not really one for keepsake ornaments, but what's a more appropriate gift for a honey-bunny?
This one is just plain pretty -

Do you see why Martha can't beat my tree?