Tuesday, December 11, 2007

spt



i've told you about my wonderful collection of ornaments, my Christmas history. the special box (yes, i still keep them seperated from our *other* ornaments) is set out and waiting patiently for that day when we finally put up the tree (friday is the day. i promise.)

this year's search for family ornaments proved to be quite tricky. all of a sudden, with a fourth person in the family, i am realizing just how many ornaments come in varieties of "3's":

santa/snowman/angel
santa/snowman/gingerbread man
snowman with red hat/blue hat/green hat
santa with gift/bell/little tree
angel with holly/candle/praying hands
toy soldier with drum/bugle/flute

ok, i think you get the point. i must of passed up 42 options in World Market alone, looking for the elusive fourth ornament.

until i stumbled upon these little guys, who were just. too. cute. to pass up. (note the 2 and 2 breakdown on the sweater color.)



they are teeny tomtes, or jultomten. matty is of swedish heritage, and we have adopted the tomtes as a fun part of our Christmas celebration. For centuries, Swedes believed in the presence of the tomten, a mythic creature in the extended fairy and leprechaun family, who was thought to live under the floor of the house or barn, bringing good luck and mischief in equal measure. i would much rather include the jultomten than lutfisk!!

i had way, waaaay to much fun posing these little guys for the perfect portrait. i almost forgot about the self-portrait part of the challenge!




and here's what happens when you've been up way too late, and you get snap happy with the digital camera: jultomten take on a life of their own!!


what story do your ornaments tell?

26 comments:

Barb said...

AWWWW! They're in your header!
Ken is partly of Swedish heritage, but we haven't picked up on this. I might have to get some of these little guys.

jenny said...

Those little guys in the sweater are so cute! I actually forgot to do me in the photo. I'll have to add it in later :)

donna said...

Oh they are so cute :)!!!!!!

Rachel said...

This was so fun and easy! Thank you! ANd I do love those little men!

Amy said...

I have never heard of that jultomten tradition...so fun! And a perfect set of 4.

Elizabeth said...

I am Swedish also. Glad you found your set of four.

Kelly said...

Is it Tuesday already? Love the little sweaters and the perfect foursome.

carlo said...

dang, i DID forget the self in my spt this week. well, at least they represent me well.

how cute are they?? i love that i have learned something about swedish heritage today. very cool spt!

Midge said...

Inspiration strikes you again. I love doing these and spared my dog the humiliation this week you'll be happy to know.

Becky said...

Forgot to comment earlier ;)

Those are the cutest things I've seen in a long time!

michelle said...

Aw, how cute are they! I love the little sweater that the are wearing!

patsy said...

Hey I did it! I love how your ornaments are so cherished I wish I would've been better at that.

Jill said...

I don't think I've ever shopped for ornaments in groups before so haven't had to experience this challenge the way you have this year, but the ones you found are pretty cute.

April said...

Jultomten are definitely better than lutfisk. We spent a couple years in Minnesota and had enough lutfisk for a lifetime. You could make up a whole little story book featuring these guys and your snap happy camera. I'll check Barnes and Noble in a year.

Serendipity said...

I love all the ornaments that have added meaning...the spiderweb, the pickle, etc. This was a new one to me!

Very cute little guys...

Brittany said...

I saw SPT on my sister-in -law's blog and just think it is a great idea! Thanks for letting other take part! Cute ornaments by the way!

Kelly said...

How cute! Glad you found 4. With 4 girls, I've noticed that lots of things come in sets of 3's, too.

Michelle Alley said...

Thanks for putting this together, even though I did a post about ornaments, I forgot about the heart my husband gave me and it's now on the tree! Thanks Lelly!

Holly said...

God Jul, Lelly! Love your little tomtens--such cute, yet sneaky, little guys.

This was a fun SPT, thanks!

michelle said...

Lelly, I don't want you to think I'm dropping out of spt or that I don't appreciate your efforts! I have just been out of it lately. But I'm back, baby. Thanks for challenging us to think about things and take pictures we might not otherwise do!

Anonymous said...

Those are so cute!

Price Cream Parlor said...

I am loving your little men in sweaters! How cute are they? Seriously so dang cute!

Katie A. said...

Hi! I just did my first SPT post. I always have so much fun reading them.
~Katie A.

Katie A. said...

http://lifeinmotion.typepad.com/

~Katie A.

Lindsay said...

I have Swedish heritage too. Those guys are cute! I'll have to keep my out for some.

I finally got my SPT posted too!

Anonymous said...

I love your ornaments! They are so cute. I find it so hard to find cute, original ornaments also. It's always a treasure hunt, isn't it?