Christmas Traditions

I've always been a crafty chick ... and over the years I've progressed from one craft to the other.  My mum and I started cross stitching around the time I got married (over 17 years ago)  - actually I started first and then having made my wedding dress and sewing on hundreds of beads and sequins Mum thought she might find it fun after all.  I soon progressed to other crafts but Mum stayed cross stitching for years - she made loads of beautiful pieces - including a few of our Christmas decorations.

I moved onto patchwork and applique ... I made this advent calendar when Olivia was one and the kids still love using it every year.

I even made this odd looking fairy that every year Paul threatens to replace with a shop bought one ... but I quickly put her up on the tree and he quickly forgets ... my dad once told me she looked disheveled like me!  I think it was a compliment!

I have another far more sophisticated angel that sits on the mantle piece that Mum made ... it has beautiful stitching and beading ...
 We also have a collection of Santa's - here's another cross-stitched example my clever mum made for me.

And another cross stitch - I've still got all my cards my mum made me over the years ... one day I will have to make them into a collage so that they too can go on display.Then we have the Sadler traditions ... our newsletter and collage of photos that goes out to all our friends and family; two Christmas trees now that we have two lounges ... one is silver and purple ... and the other is a menagerie of all our decorations loving cherished over the years.  We add new ones every year. 

One of our favourite traditions is the children's annual tree decoration purchase.  The plan is that by the time they leave home they will have a collection to start their own trees with ... although I think they may have to prise them out of my fingers when the time comes.  I am trying to catch up with my scrapbooking record of these purchases - it's great to see what they choose each year.

Olivia's 2009 decoration is a ball made from cloves (or peppercorns as she calls them - don't ask I'm working on a scrapbooking page to explain!) - she says it smells of Christmas Ham and that's why she just had to have it!

And Kieran's is a flashing number this year ... a fluffy santa who's rather large tummy lights up and changes colour ... wonder what he will think of it when he leaves home and will it still flash?

And another favourite Christmas decoration is the Nativity set from Willow Tree.  My girlfriend in Perth started me off with the Three Kings (thank you Suzy). It's taken me a few years to get all the pieces with baby Jesus arriving only this year (thank you Paul, years of nagging and he finally remembered to buy it earlier this month).

  

As for our other traditions, well we always see a Christmas movie on Christmas Eve, this year we are off to see the Carols by Candlelight in Melbourne so it will have to be in the afternoon.  And, the children always receive a box of Walkers shortbread in their stockings from Santa.

Okay so they aren't your normal traditions are they, but they are what makes our family Christmas.  I love that even though the kids are getting older they still treasure family traditions - from helping to write the newsletter, to putting the photos together for the collage, to reminding me that Santa needs to check his list twice for Walkers shortbread!

Just asked Olivia what she thought our family traditions were and she said 'don't forget to mention the Christmas ham!" .... she's obsessed!

Thanks for letting me share a little of our Sadler Christmas. Hope that your preparations are going well and you aren't stressing out too much.

Back soon with more creations.