I have tons of ornaments that I’ve collected for about 34 years. Some are broken but I still keep them and some I just don’t put on the tree every year because honestly I get tired of hanging up so many at one time!
Over the years, I purchased an ornament for each person in the house. The ornaments I picked were carefully and specifically chosen based on particular interests that year or how I saw the person. Every ornament has a special place in my heart. I remember where I found each one. While decorating the tree a couple of weeks ago, I mentioned to my brother how I came to have so many ornaments and he suggested I write a note about how special each one is to me. The note could be placed in the ornament box and my kids and their kids will be able to maintain a history of the treasured memories attached to my ornaments.
One year was pretty easy. I found an ornament for everyone in the same little nook at the Southern Christmas Show in Charlotte, where I found most of them over the years. They were all made of wood and said, “World’s Greatest something” which made it pretty convenient – one stop shop! There was World’s Greatest Cheerleader for my youngest daughter Reili who was about eleven at the time and cheering for pop warner little league football; 
World’s Greatest Mechanic for my son Josh; and, World’s Greatest Jack of All Trades for my oldest daughter Andrea because she’s so creative and literally can do pretty much anything. For her tech savvy husband Mike, I got World’s Greatest Computer Wiz – he’s a tech genius. I think one of the biggest scores was the World’s Greatest Bingo Player for mom, her favorite past-time! And… of course, World’s Greatest Mom for me!! Those were all fun and pretty simple to figure out.
Other ornaments over the years included a really cute one of an adorable little girl holding a sign which reads Middle Child, Mom’s Favorite. Andrea used to always say that about herself. I was so excited when I found it. Ha! Ha! During the period that Josh was in the Army, I found one of a little soft male doll with dark hair dressed in Army fatigues. I love shoes so of course I was ecstatic when I found a pretty lilac colored high heel shoe with tiny embellishments on the toe. Some others not so obvious are a white clay star with royal blue eyes, nose and mouth for Reili; and, a clay cross with brown,yellow, and white colors on the front of it for mom
Perhaps one of the most dear to me is a real bird nest that we actually found in one of the Christmas trees we cut down on a tree farm in the North Carolina mountains years ago. We have saved and carefully wrapped it in tissue paper every year. It’s the last ornament we place in the tree before putting on the topper. There’s just something about it that warms my heart and reminds of the many blessings in our lives.