My Charm Bracelet

My charm bracelet started out as a First Communion gift from my godmother (and cousin) M. It was a small silver bracelet holding a religious charm or two with the date of my First Communion engraved one of the charms. I didn't think much of the bracelet until I started reading Judy Blume in elementary school. I can't remember if it was in the book Blubber, or if it was Deenie (it DEFINITELY was not Wifey, and btw, I didn't know that book wasn't exactly written for 3rd graders when I read that one--whoopsie!), but I remember reading about a girl on the playground in one of her books who had a silver charm bracelet. Not only did she have all these cool charms, but her charms did things--they moved or made noises. I don't know why that struck me as super cool, but it did and I started my quest to make my own charm bracelet with charms that "moved" or did something.

I dug out my gift bracelet and started out on my quest to find charms that moved--I thought it would be hard to do, but actually you can find movable charms at most places that sell silver charms. I found a coo coo clock in Frankenmuth, MI that had movable parts, and later a beer stein that opened and closed from the same store in Frankenmuth. Later, I found a bicycle pump that moved in Rochester, MI, and then a sand filled hourglass in Ludington, MI while on vacation with my parents. While in San Francisco one year, I found a slot machine with and arm and wheel that really work, and a fish that wiggles from Fisherman's Wharf, and even an abacus that has movable beads on it.

I have a large family, so when people started to get wind of my charm bracelet, some of my relatives starting making a habit of picking up a silver charm for me from whenever they went on vacation or a business trip. My charm bracelet has been decorated from charms from all over the globe now with a kangaroo and koala bear from Australia, a hula dancer from Hawaii that moves and sounds like a ringing bell, a Kiwi bird from New Zealand, a gondola from Switzerland, the Eiffel Tower from France, a movable cow bell and bicycle from Germany, a sombrero from Mexico, a windmill with working parts from Holland, a movable turtle from the Cayman Islands, a castle guard and chopping block from London, and most recently, a beautiful Irish Claddagh charm from our friend, J's, recent trip to Ireland! It is so cool!

I have over 50 charms now and 3 bracelets as they won't all fit on one, and some of the charms are actually too big to put on my bracelet (like my Disney Castle) and I am looking forward to collecting more. I hope to actually visit all the places my charms have come from, but until then I will live vicariously through my charms :)