The Island of Misfit Toys

The annual Johnston family Christmas decorating extravaganza was held today, and as we pulled out all of the decorations, I noticed a theme. We put out each and every single item in the boxes, with no regard to its condition or attractiveness. Of course, there are some nice, very beautiful things we put out. But honestly, we look most forward to dragging out the old homemade ornaments that would fit right in on the Island of Misfit Toys. Here are a few of our favorites:

This beauty is made of an old ground beef tray--washed, baked, and decorated. Washed really, really well. We hope.

Plastic cup. Glue. Red glitter. Done. Instant heirloom.

Who doesn't love a good dried macaroni wreath?

This jewel above is a real crowd-pleaser. Daddy loves it so much that it goes front and center on every tree, every year. This green one is Daniel's and I made a red one to match. Mine got thrown out years ago because...well, I guess it was too ugly to look at. Good thing this one isn't nearly there yet. Right?

This little guy is my personal favorite. He used to have little googly eyes. And, oh yeah...he used to be a whole candy cane. Over the years he's started disintegrating from the inside out. I imagine he'll grace the tree until he's just an empty wrapper with antlers on top. Wait, who am I kidding? The wrapper and antlers will probably still be draped on a tree branch for years to come.

As much as we moan and groan when each of these ornaments is pulled from the box, I wouldn't have Christmas any other way. I'm thankful that we can give these less-than-perfect ornaments a warm, happy home for Christmas. They're thankful that they haven't been exiled to the Island of Misfit Toys...yet.

Merry Christmas from the Johnston clan!

(And yes, we all planned to wear Auburn gear at the same time...we don't usually call each other to plan our wardrobes. Usually. Unless Mom makes us. We're just a proud buncha folks these days.)

PS--In order to get to the old homestead to decorate, I had to drive...in the snow. Snow! In Alabama! In December! Well, it was just flurries and none of it stuck, but still! Snow! You know what that is? Global warming in action :)