Just like our trees, each has a special memory attached to it and each year when I put them out we talk about those memories...hopefully the kids love it as much as I do.
The first and most delicate Nativity was my grandmothers. Actually my step grandmother, which makes it even more special. This amazing lady got an automatic granddaughter (who was 8 and feisty at the time) and treated me like one of her own from the very first time she met me. I spent a lot of special times with her and she never treated me any differently than the other grandchildren. I loved her dearly! When she died my stepfather gifted me with her nativity and it is one of my most treasured possessions. It holds a lot of memories. Want to know something fun - it is from Avon! Really! She sold Avon for years and collected the pieces one by one. I actually saw that they have pieces on Ebay now - I will have to keep that in mind as our angel has lost her head a few times in our moves.
This nativity was first given to me by my mom and it is one the kids really like because I do not have a panic attack when they touch it! It is made of some sort of heavy resin and is safe to touch. Last year we kept finding all of the pieces rearranged thanks to the then 5 year old. Usually all of the people were crowded around the manger. Makes sense!
This nativity is one of our newest, given to us by our dear friends who lived in Germany at the time. It is from the Elim Mission in Poland. Each piece is handcrafted and the sales go to help feed Christian families in the area. Some of the pieces have neat back stories like the verse John 3:16 is written on a piece of paper and sewn into every baby Jesus! If you are looking for a child friendly set, this is a great one to have!
This rustic set was also given to us by a friend several years ago for Christmas. (Have I mentioned I have the best friends?!) It fits our rustic-wanna-be life and greets you in our entry. This is another we put up higher because SOMEBODY'S little hands cannot seem to leave it alone! ;)
This is our newest nativity that I bought last year. It was hand carved in Guatemala by a local artist there. Someday it will go with our Guat prince, but for now is a reminder to us all of how blessed we are to have him in our family! Just like God adopting us into His family because of His love for us, so too, was CJ adopted into ours.
Then each of the kids has their own Nativity that somehow they claimed through the years. They get set up in their own rooms and will eventually go to a new home with each child, I suspect. Well, maybe the Little People one can stay here for grandchildren someday. I do love that Little People one. I use to think that you should not touch the Nativities, much less play with them, but in my old age I have relaxed a little (gasp, I know!) and decided that we should not keep little hands from loving on the Baby Jesus! You know, that whole "Let the little children come to me" thing! ;)
There are more. A glass one here, a ceramic one there. I love them all. It makes me smile to pass by one, or two, in each room and warms my heart to be reminded that Jesus is indeed the reason for our celebration, but more importantly the reason for our lives!
May you be blessed this Christmas with the love of God!
Welcome! Follow our family of 6 on our military moving, God loving, homeschool adventure! We are honored you have joined us and look forward to hearing from you.
What a nice collection of Nativities! I would collect them, too, if I could. =0) I have a Nativity set that is precious to me -- it's the only one I remember having throughout my childhood and my mom has passed it along to me. She originally got it the first year they were married, so it's now over 40 years old! It's breakable so my girls definitely can't touch it. I'd love to get that Little People set so my girls could safely touch it and play with it without fear of breakage.
ReplyDeleteI love Nativity sets, too. I started collecting years ago. I love to get ones that represent another culture or share the Christmas story in a special way. I have my favorite family Nativities as well, but one of the ones I love the most has symbols of Jesus' death woven into the set. There is a nail on the floor, a crown of thorns resting on the stable. It does such a beautiful job of reminding me of the whole picture. Have a very Merry Christmas!
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