Thursday, December 08, 2011

grammy's ornaments



dan's parents, grammy & pop pop, were truly the quintessential grandparents.
he could fix anything
&
she could bake and sew anything.

at christmastime, she would bake Norwegian cookies
and play her manheim steamroller cd.
their home would smell of a glorious turkey in the oven
with all the fixins for our holiday meal.

while we always miss them,
i think they are even more missed at Christmastime.

early in our marriage, i was telling Lil how much i loved vintage christmas ornaments.
she proceeded to tell me she had thrown all of hers away.
oh say it isn't so.
Herb & Lil were minimalist before it was hip to be minimalists!

after dan's daddy passed away, we  dan was painstakingly going through 
& packing up their belongings.
he ran across a box of dozens of her vintage ornaments.

while i have no idea if she can see us from heaven,
i had to laugh.....she hadn't thrown them all out after all!

yesterday i pulled them out and placed them
(half of them actually...there are so many!)
in to dan's daddy's tool caddy, which was made by his daddy.
it's probably 100 years old.
another priceless "thing" that connects us to our past.
anyway, the caddy, it's huge.
if the pictures below don't give you an idea of the size
it's about 3 feet long.
i'm not exactly sure what i'm going to do with it 
especially when all the girls are home 
but for now it's hanging out on our kitchen counter
& on pretty days i will sit it outside on our porch.

thank you grammy!
maybe i'll even try my hand at making norweigan cookies one day.
no promises though ;)




















last year , this was how i used pop pop's carrier



26 comments:

Jen Kershner said...

I love that tool carrier! It would be amazing to own one but to own one that has a family history like that is priceless! I can't wait to see more of Christmas at your house Paige.

Kat said...

Gorgeous! All of it! So precious to have all of those gorgeous ornaments as a precious reminder of loved ones. xo

traci said...

the ornaments are absolutely gorgeous. i would love to come across an attic full of them. especially if they belonged to someone special.

Shannan Martin said...

Girl, you did it again. :)

Gail said...

Beautifully done!! Also love vintage ornaments. :)

Debby said...

That tool carrier is wonderful. Love it both ways. So nice to have those memories that you can look at.

Anonymous said...

I love the carrier, too. Looks amazing with all these nice glitter balls. :)
Have a lovely day.

Susan R said...

It's beautiful and I loved how you've arranged it. One better that you've tied them together by placing her ornaments in his tool caddy...you're a gem.

Shannon said...

Beautiful Paige! I love vintage especially when it has such a sweet story behind it :)

Lemonade Makin' Mama said...

You make everything you touch, pretty.

Coastal Health and Home said...

Love the pink and special meaning!

Enjoy decorating.

Wendy said...

Just lovely, Paige. Sentimental decorations are definitely the best. And when they remind us of our loved ones, they're even better.

Been thinking about you a lot lately. Hoping all is well with your health.

xoxo
Wendy

Unknown said...

that carrier is just perfect! love it with the candles, ornaments & greens! merry christmas! susan

Lulu and Co. said...

Stunning and precious! Christmas goodness that has me smiling,
xo,
Lulu

Jboo said...

Wow -- beautiful ornaments and carrier!

I'm not sure that Brinkley is a fan of your decorating! :)

janet

3 Peanuts said...

It looks so pretty Paige and ther eis that POP of color the girls want too:) I simply adore family heirlooms like that. LOVE them:)

Rebecca said...

I love what you did with the ornaments and the tool carrier. Love it! I really love Brinkley though... :)

Tiffini said...

love the story behind it all
SO pretty..both ways
xo

julieann said...

I love vintage bulbs and have a pretty big collection. Love the tool carrier idea. I may just have to snag my pink one from the garden shed and borrow your idea. Do I see some little Putz house in your photo? I just started collecting those and just LOVE them. They are so hard to find here. I did get one for .29 at at a thrift store.. "that was a fun find" Merry Christmas!!!

Anonymous said...

I love the tool carrier and the vintage ornaments..What a gift for you to have them..I really like how you displayed the two together..

Kerri said...

I love that you have those ornaments from grammy and that they will one day be passed down to your girls! I cringe to think that both of my nana's oraments were thrown out when they passed away because I love them too. I am so happy you have hers! And your Christmas village is darling too!

Between You and Me said...

love this pictures...
i've been working on christmas bokeh this week....
yours turned out so beautiful.

love the ornaments and the history behind them!

brockey said...

Love vintage things especially christmas ornaments. I have my mothers in a trifle bowl. The caddy I am drolly over !!!!

Kathy @ Creative Home Expressions said...

That is gorgeous, Paige! I love those ornaments! It looks like that tool caddy has come in handy too, and it's nice to see how you've incorporated past generations into your holiday decor.

.dear.jenny. said...

ive spent the last few hours looking through new blogs...and procrastinating before my family comes to town for the holidays. i have to say, your beautiful daughters make me want to start a family. you have all these wonderful age ranges and they all look so happy and healthy. cheers!

Alecia said...

Love it! Those ornaments & tool box are amazing!! Brinkley's cute as ever