My wife and I both love Christmas. We love it so much that we made a nice dinner, played Christmas music, and set up the tree last night. We also only have 1 or 2 more gifts to buy. Some people decorate their trees with beautiful bows and lights, making everything look classy and consistent, like a tree you’d see in Macy’s. And that’s fine. But our tree and my parents’ tree when I was growing up are covered in memories. I have ornaments from my grandparents and parents going back many years. I have a tiny green bell from my mother’s tree when she was little. I have a lollipop from Miss Carter, my kindergarten teacher. Jenny has one from her first grade teacher. We picked up ornaments on our cruises. Some are just fun, like the skiing M&M and the Homer in a Santa hat. We even have a few pet ornaments. Most of them have some kind of sentimental value because they connect us with our people and our past. Putting up the tree is like stepping back in time. I encourage you to put up your tree soon.

This morning I updated the family page with a few more pictures and more info about the colorful individuals in my family.