Tree Treasures No. 22: White Christmas, Mom and the Music That Never Left

My mom passed away on Christmas Eve in 2011.
Hard to believe it’s been 14 years ago today.

She gave me the love of musicals. She loved music so much.

Every Christmas season, we watched White Christmas every single time it was on TV. This was way back before VHS tapes, DVDs, or streaming. If it was on, it was on in our house.

I’ve had this ornament for decades. It always felt like a little snow globe of that shared tradition. This year when we unwrapped the ornaments, the water was gone. Completely dried up. It broke my heart.

Not because it was “just an ornament”… but because it carried the memory of sitting together, watching a movie we both loved, year after year. Even Dave knows the words to “we’ll follow the old man wherever he wants to go” because the movie has played so many times in our home.

We even went to see White Christmas on stage together in 2004. One of those memories that still feels warm when I think about it.

Letting go of the ornament was hard. But the memory stays. And honestly, that’s the part that matters most.

Do you have a movie, song, or tradition that instantly reminds you of someone you love?

If you enjoy nostalgic holiday stories, I’m also sharing my Christmas memories in a new series called Christmas Stories Throughout the Years.