A truly vintage Christmas decoration classic comes from the Pickle Ornament. For those of you who have not yet heard of it, it is simply a glass ornament that is in the shape of a pickle! It can be either a dill or a gherkin, it comes in various forms. It is not the shape or style of the ornament as much as it is the use of it.

For many generations, families have been hiding a pickle ornament on their tree as part of their traditional Christmas celebration! In my family when our kids were still at home, my wife and I would make that one of the last orders of business on Christmas Eve. As the kids were all tucked in fast asleep and we were winding down from wrapping the presents, we would then hide the pickle ornament! That task was usually my treat being 6'4", I could reach up a bit higher than my wife and find the best spot possible! With a green ornament on a green tree, it was naturally camouflaged which made the task a bit easier. The object also was not to make it too difficult when the kids were a lot younger so that they could eventually find it without ripping the tree apart!

As our kids grew older, we had to make it more challenging, so we would hide the ornament somewhere else in the house ala easter egg hunt type of thing. That would make it a bit tougher and more valuable for the lucky finder. Usually we would have a special present reserved, but in a pinch, cash will do quite nicely.

Now that I've told you a bit about how our family handled the pickle ornament, lets take a look back at history to see where it actually came from. The tradition most likely came from Germany when parents would hide the pickle ornament and a lucky child would find it. The story goes that the child in addition to receiving an extra present from St. Nick would also receive good fortune for the next year.

There are others who debunk this story and claim that it was more likely a Bavarian who came to America and fought in the Civil War. The Bavarian's name was John Lower and he was captured and locked up in the notorious Andersonville prison. Nearing starvation, he convinced a jailer to get him a pickle to eat. Having gotten a surge of life from this kind offering, Lower survived and began his own tradition of hiding a small glass pickle ornament in the family Christmas tree. Its finder on Christmas morning would benefit from a year of good luck.

It is obviously impossible to track down the authenticity of these stories or fables as one might call them. The important thing is start your own family tradition and begin to celebrate as so many of us have over the years with a Pickle Ornament!! Let this become a vintage Christmas decoration in your home!!