Ornaments

I know talking about ornaments in April seems a little bit weird, but I never seem to post much around the holidays and the closest thing I seem to have for a theme for the A to Z Challenge this year is “things I meant to post about but haven’t.”  That brings us to ornaments.

Thanksgiving is definitely my favorite holiday, but Christmas is a pretty close second.  And I love Christmas ornaments!  My parents don’t celebrate any holidays, so as an adult, I tend to be a bit enthusiastic about them.  Or like a child in an adult’s body.

I got my first Christmas ornaments when I was 25, and my first Christmas tree when I was 26.  I had moved out and started exchanging Christmas gifts with co-workers and friends before then, but never got a Christmas tree when I lived alone.  It didn’t seem worth it, and I wasn’t even entirely sure how one went about getting and decorating a Christmas tree.  I think that’s one of those things most people learn as kids and take for granted as adults. 

I’ve loved ornaments ever since Nick gave me my first one.  I think the butterfly is so pretty.

My boss, Ginger, gave me this cupcake ornament when I left my job in SC to take a job in NC. 

Nick’s mom gave me this one in 2018, so I got a hippopotamus for Christmas.  Is the song stuck in your head now?

Not technically an ornament, but Nick’s mom also gave me hippopotamus lights for Christmas.  And they’re pink, which makes me ridiculously happy.

Our friend Martha gave us this one the first Christmas after we were married.  She started looking for it right after our wedding to find one with the right dress and tux. 

Our friend Alex gave us this one.  I call it the Thanksgiving ornament.  That means I really like it.

Of course, we have lots of firefighter-themed ornaments since Nick volunteered with the fire department for so long.

This isn’t technically an ornament, but it is a Christmas decoration.  My old coworker EJ gave this to me for Secret Santa several years ago.  Some people thought it was weird, but I love it. 

We usually try to get an ornament on our yearly vacation.  Except for 2016.  We weren’t planning to get an ornament that year anyway, since it’s a year we both want zero reminders of.  Leaving vacation early as part of a hurricane evacuation sealed the deal on not getting an ornament that year.

This one is from when we went to Atlanta in 2012.  It’s from Coca-Cola World.

Quite a few of ours are beach and/or South Carolina-themed.  We do love going to Folly Beach for vacation.

I love getting ornaments.  I love picking them out, and I love when other people give them to us.  It makes me happy to think of the stories that go with them every year when we hang them up.  I don’t think I’ll ever get tired of being given special ornaments.  I don’t have ornaments or decorations from childhood, so I appreciate being given them now.  The stories that go with them may not be old stories, but they’re part of my holiday story. 

What are your favorite ornaments? 

Volunteer Firefighters

Think about the last time the local fire department came to your home or business, or the last time they directed you around a wreck on the interstate.  There’s a pretty big chance that at least some of those people weren’t being paid for the work they were doing; they were volunteer firefighters.   

The reasons for becoming a volunteer firefighter are as varied as the men and women who choose to volunteer, but include following in a parent’s footsteps, a desire to help and improve the community, a need for something exciting, or a desire for positive role models.  Regardless of the reasons for volunteering, volunteer firefighters provide valuable services for their communities including responding to medical calls (approximately half of all volunteer firefighters have an EMT certification), traffic control, and rescue work, which includes everything from people stuck in elevators to vehicle extrication, as well as preparing landing zones for emergency helicopters. 

Volunteer firefighters are highly dedicated, usually spending a minimum of about 35 hours per month on training, meetings, and responding to calls.  Many have been volunteering for ten or more years, and plan to continue volunteering for many more years.