Ornaments: they're just decorations, right? You just put them on the Christmas tree to make it look pretty, right? Throw a little tinsel on there, string up some lights if your tree isn't pre-lit, and then you're set! Well, I think there's a little more to it than that. I think that ornaments are memories.

I find that ornaments are great reminders of memories that we have from Christmas' past. Specifically, I have an ornament that has been around for as long as I can remember: a Blue's Clues ornament. That ornament has been around since I was probably two or three years old. Now, every year when I hang it up, I think of the other Christmas' that I have put it on the tree. I can remember hanging it up when I was five, and really every year since!

These interesting little decorations have taken even more meaning now, thanks to my girlfriend, Alexis. We started dating in September of 2015, and that December (so about a year ago) we bought ornaments that we felt were a great addition to our collections. That's when she suggested that we get an ornament when we go somewhere together, or when one of us sees one that we think is just too perfect to leave behind.

Unless I'm mistaken, the next addition to the collection came when she went to Disney World with her family in May 2016. She told me that since we are both crazy about Disney, she was going to get an ornament to add to our collection, and she did! Then we both went to Gatlinburg, Tennessee with my family in August, and we knew that we had to find an ornament for our collection. That was a given.

While we were in Gatlinburg, we also visited the neighboring towns of Pigeon Forge and Sevierville. In Pigeon Forge, we went to a shopping center and we found a Christmas shop! We immediately went into it and searched the entire store for the perfect ornament. After much deliberation, we found a hand-carved, hand-painted, wooden ornament that looked like a car. It was red and had a little fake tree with some fake snow on it attached to the top of the car. Also painted on the side was "Pigeon Forge." The car is held on the tree by a small piece of twine, adding to the rustic appearance of the ornament. This was it. This was the perfect ornament.

These are memories that I will always have when I see these ornaments. With the Disney ornament, I'll remember hearing the excitement in Alexis' voice when she would call me every night and tell me about the events of her day, and I would keep the details of my day of cashiering to myself because I just couldn't stand the thought of bringing her down. I'll remember hearing how happy she was being in one of her favorite vacation destinations in the entire world. And when I see the Pigeon Forge ornament, I'll remember the week-long trip that we took with my family in August 2016. I'll remember going to Dollywood, taking a ski-lift to the top of a mountain, going up in a hot air balloon for the first time, visiting the Titanic museum, and so much more!

Ornaments are more than just decorations. They are memories.