Ideas for Christmas

Here's a way to start a wonderful family tradition. It's really great when you can start with a baby's first Christmas, but better late than never. Here are the steps:

1. Buy (or better yet, make!) each child a tree ornament with the year date on it.

2. Find a box that fits the ornament as closely as possible. Write the year date on the top of the box.

3. Decorate a sheet of paper with Christmas themes, and a title such "My Favorite Memory of Christmas 2007". You can use typing paper and stickers, or you can print it out on your computer. If you print it yourself, I highly recommend putting lines on the paper for smaller kids.

4. Fold this paper neatly and put it in the box with the ornament.

5. On another sheet of paper, write a note instructing the child to write (with parental help, if necessary) his/her favorite memory on the first sheet and always keep it in the box with the ornament. If the ornament is for a baby or toddler, Mom or Dad can write something special about that Christmas that will be meaningful years later. Put this note in the box, too.

6. Wrap the ornament box.

7. Find a box at least the size of a shoe box and decorate it, with something like "Jamie's Christmas Ornaments" on the top. This is to hold the collection as it grows, but in a few years you'll have to either make a second shoe box or a larger box to hold all of them. You can also buy those boxes specifically made for storing ornaments, which would work well, too. Of course you won't need to include the storage box as part of the box every year, just when they get full.

8. Put the wrapped ornament box inside the decorated shoe box.

9. Wrap the larger box and put it under the tree.

If you're on the crafty side, you can do all of this for $5.00 or even less. Probably under $10.00 even if you buy everything instead of making it. You don't want to spend a bundle on it because this probably wouldn't be the child's "main" gift. Trust me, a lot of them won't get very excited about it now, though after 2-3 years most of them start looking forward to adding to their collection. But that first Christmas in their own place, and every Christmas for the rest of their lives, they will absolutely adore you for it. And you can almost bet the ranch they'll continue the tradition with their own kids. My experience has been that as children the girls appreciate these more than the boys, but once they're grown up the boys love them even more than the girls. Men can be wonderfully sentimental about past holidays.

If you want to do this for older children, you can still fill in the earlier years retroactively. For example, for a 12 year old, buy/make an ornament for 2007, 2006 (last year's memories should still be reasonably fresh), and 1995. Next year do them for 2008, 1996 and 1997. You'll be caught up in a few years. Just keep track of what years you've filled in until the set it complete to date. You could keep your list in your own box of decorations so you won't misplace it from year to year.

Note: sometimes you can find dated ornaments from previous years on eBay.

Don't feel like the ornaments have to be either all bought or all made. Mix and match if you like. They can be as ecclectic as the memories they represent. If you're making some of them, but find one for sale that's particularly meaningful, buy it. Do try to make them age-appropriate. When your grandson is 30, he won't mind that the ornament from when he was 3 has a teddy bear on it. He'll enjoy the memories.

Ideas for making ornaments:

- Needlepoint on plastic canvas - quick and under $1.00 (I did two whole trees with these one year and I was working full time)
- Cookie cutter ornaments made from salt dough and painted - under $1.00 and a great idea if you're doing them for several kids.
- A special photo, laminated and decorated with glitter pens
- Paint your design on wooden ornament blanks from craft stores
- Decoupage meaningful images on wooden blanks
- There are dozens of ways to make ornaments. Magazines and website are loaded with ideas. Just don't forget to add the date!