Sharing a Special-Occasion Tradition

     Twenty-plus years ago we went to my aunt and uncles home down in Baxley (south Georgia) for Thanksgiving and my aunt had started something that I have since done.  She had a cloth tablecloth on her table and everyone who was there for the holiday meal signed the tablecloth.  Afterwards she would carefully embroider over each signature as it had been written, thus creating a memory cloth of the occasion and who had been present.  I thought it was a wonderful idea and started my own.  Actually, I have two of them that I keep and I regret that I never got around to starting a third since I have the three daughters.
   I write the occasion and the date on the cloth and then everyone who is present writes their name indicating that they were present.  The date and all corresponding names are embroidered in tiny stitches of the same color.  So you can look at the date, see what color it is, and then all names done in the same color represent the individuals.  Our first documented special occasion on my clothes is Larry and Angelia's Wedding on November 11, 1995.
     Tuesday morning I stood and ironed each cloth, remembering the past occasions and paying close attention to all the signatures on there.  What a wonderful heirloom I'm creating to hand down someday.  They're special to all of us and everyone makes sure that all the names are written on the cloth before anyone leaves.

For the Grandbabies, we outline their hands and I embroider them.  Here, I've done Shelby Jo's hands one year over another showing how she's grown.  She's now almost 8 years old and can write her own name.

Sadie Vanessa was my sweeter-than-sweet dog that we lost this past January.  I'll be adding her name one more time this year to indicate her passing.

A couple of years ago I gave each of my three daughters their own blank plain tablecloth to start their own for their own family occasions.

Each day we make deposits in the memory banks of our children.     - Charles Swindoll