Now that we’ve all enjoyed our Thanksgiving celebrations, it’s time to start – or at least plan – the Christmas decorations. As the years pass, I spend less time and effort decorating my house, but I still do the basics for the family.
Not my house.
I have a new tree this year (artificial), so that’s probably the first thing that will be set up and decorated. Haven’t had a real tree since:
- The tree trunk went through the storm door.
- The cat tried to climb the tree, and put deep gouges in my forearm when I stopped it.
Also NOT my house.
I love trimming the tree. Many of the ornaments are tied to memories of times past (good ones), and people long gone.
There’s the tiny painted hot air balloon with gondola that I gave to my mother one year, along with a tiny wooden rowboat, a lighthouse, a modern looking chrome and brass reindeer, and a tin merry-go-round.
It’s fun to look at the ornaments with pictures of my grandchildren taken when they were babies and toddlers. Nothing like the giants that they are today.
A wooden bell purchased in Sweden and given to my mother by her minister in the 1980’s. A ceramic wreath made by a friend in his class at Pewabic Pottery about the same time.
Lots of angels, stars, snowflakes, and small creches, made of plastic, and glass, and metal, and ceramic. A metal ornament with the name of my old dog, Sassy. A new ceramic ornament with a picture of my dear dog, Stella.
A couple of Snoopy ornaments. A polar bear. A tiny Lionel steam engine.
My younger grandson always asks me why I have an angel on the top of my tree instead of a star. I haven’t always, but she’s been up there for thirty years or so, looking down on us all (and I like her).
After the tree comes the lighted village which I might dispense with – except the giant teenage grandson loves to look at and play with it. Because it’s a “tradition”. I found out that almost anything I do might be considered a “tradition” by the children!
The stockings. I no longer use the one my mother made for me when I was a baby – the felt one festooned with sequined ornaments, and my name at the top. Instead, I 
use an aqua satin stocking that she also made for me – but as an adult – decorated with sequined sailboat, palm tree and starfish, with a golden sun shining down over it all. My daughter has a similar one in pink satin given to her by Grandma.
The grandsons have their own stockings made of felt with sequined ornaments and their names at the top – this time made by this grandma when they were babies. I made a dark red velvet stocking, lined with silk and trimmed with tie silk in a paisley pattern, for my son-in-law when he married my daughter.
I might put out a few candles – for atmosphere and scent – and Christmas cards from past years with photos of the family – for remembrance.
I’ll probably put the miniature Christmas tree in the boys’ bedroom, along with a stuffed Rudolph, and a pretty stuffed white cat with a red ribbon around her neck. There is also a lighted “candle” of a snowman that they like, and some old music boxes. They may be big boys, but they love the same old things (those are traditions, you know!) year after year!
There’s a small Hallmark Christmas train (1990’s vintage), and a Santa music box that plays, “Santa Claus is Coming To Town” that settles on the television stand for the season, along with a small stuffed Snoopy in his Santa outfit.
Last, but most important, I will put my small creche in a special place; the baby Jesus, Mary and Joseph, the shepherds with their sheep, the three kings with their camels, a donkey, a cow, and an angel looking down on them all.
Whatever your traditions may be, I hope for you a beautiful Advent and Christmas season.
Stella's Place 
LOL – I love that you labeled “Not my house.” 😀 Yeah – mine, either.
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Yeah, nothing like mine. That second one reminds me of the White House.
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“Martha Stewart doesn’t live here …”
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I’ll have my lighting display for you upon my return this evening. It shall be breathtaking. ☃
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…… waiting ……
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Look to the bottom. 😉
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Heh. Mr. Cranky has made it clear he’s not going to hang the lights this year (we haz a very tall house) and as I now get bonafide, genuine, fer real vertigo, being on a ladder is verboten – looks like I’ll have to hire someone to pretty up the place for us. I like to leave them up all winter, as it’s nice to come up to the drive and see the lights in the dark of winter.
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When the child was younger and still at home, I went all out. Decorated tree (sometimes 2 trees), hanging garlands, wreathes and mistletoe, nativity, knick-knacks on every table, centerpieces, candles, poinsettias, the whole shebang, with Christmas music going during waking hours. As I got older (and sicker of putting it all back up) it became less and less, until last year we finally gave away the last lighted artificial tree. I’m now down to boxes and boxes of ornaments……. including every Marvin the Martian Christmas ornament ever made and some antique handpainted china bells that belonged to my late great aunt to unload.
This year I’ll use teh Momma’s lighted porcelain tabletop tree (I’ll take a pic for y’all when I get it set up.) Period. With my herd of puddies, candles, centerpieces and real plants of any sort merely invite disaster.
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I have one of those porcelain trees – I got it at a garage sale – but I haven’t used it for a long time.
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Also possible not your house….
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That last one makes me dizzy!
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I was trying to find funny pictures, but every search was coming back with just crude stuff so I gave up.
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Well, the first one looks as if my cat attacked it.
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Me and Mrs. T worked all day Saturday and Sunday on these. Hope y’all enjoy as much as we do. 😆
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Mrs. T would never let you get away with that!
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Oops. That was the wrong one. This is the one I meant to post. 😉
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Cute!
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Nice!
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We once had a neighbor who was so enthusiastic about lights that I had to buy blackout curtains. One small advantage of military life is that if you don’t like your neighbors, you’re not stuck with ’em forever.
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This happens just up the road about an hour from our house out in Johnson City, TX. Birthplace of LBJ.
https://youtu.be/IR9-M7pVxY4
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We always have a real tree, I like the way it makes my house smell. I hate decorating for Christmas though. I try to do less every year, but my children always have different plans at Thanksgiving and every Thanksgiving they dig out the decorations and start putting them up. They enjoy getting everything out and seem to remember where everything came from and their age when we got it and they remember the stories about the things that were passed down by grandparents. I thought when they became adults they wouldn’t care if our house was decorated, but that hasn’t seemed to be the case.
I enjoy watching them do it though and it does bring back new memories every year that I had forgotten.
They take after their father and Christmas is their favorite day of the year. I just count my blessings that they still want to be home for Christmas.
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When the children were little, we went all out too, and had “countdown” activities to coincide with the Advent countdown calendar.
Not so much. Last year, we bought an artificial programmable tree I immediately dubbed the “disco tree”. The kinder were able to get it rockin and rollin but I knew it was going to be too much for us tech-challenged folk this year. I listed it on E-Bay and sold to a lady in MI, and seriously underestimated the weight and shipping cost to send it to her. Since it was my mistake, and she paid IMMEDIATELY (like seconds, after the auction ended) and had tried to bid against herself because her kids wanted it so badly, I didn’t have the heart to tell her that since we iz not a big corporation with mega shipping discounts, the shipping cost was going to be over $85.00. So – I wrapped the box in Christmas wrap and put it in on the UPS truck this morn. I think at the end, after paying E-Bay and PayPal and UPS their vig, it’s costing me money to send this lady my Disco Tree From Hell. But one thing for sure – it’s not in MY house anymore.
I’m not sure what we’re going to do this year, as all the kinder are going to their “others” homes. I think we may drag one of the potted live trees in from the patio and make do with that.
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That’s funny, and sad, all at the same time! Maybe you can rescue a Charlie Brown tree, and plant it in your yard next Spring.
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Chickadees leaving the nest and feathering their own is part of life. I can certainly understand now why the few times we were able to be “home” with the kids for Christmas Day my parents and inlaws were thrilled. It’ll be a big adjustment for us this year, that’s for sure. Then again – maybe not, if we’re still cat custodians. They don’t let us sleep in either.
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We will be getting a real tree this Saturday and decorating then also. The first hour or two when we bring the tree in the house is spent reassuring my neurotic dog that the tree is not an intruder who needs to be taken down or barked at for the entire night. The dog also has no love or trust of pumpkins.
Then again I may just be curled in a ball by Saturday, I’ve been feeling under the weather but thought maybe it was just from running about but I just got a call from the niece and niece jr. and they were both sick as dogs after Thanksgiving so they hope that they didn’t pass it on 😦
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Since your dog is neurotic, I thought you might enjoy reading this:
http://hyperboleandahalf.blogspot.com/2010/11/dogs-dont-understand-basic-concepts.html
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Thanks Stella, I think Allie is great! I’ve seen her work before it is my dog to a T . I have 2 dogs who are both neurotic, both are rescues, one gets car sick (did you know dogs can have Dramamine ?) and one trembles for the whole ride and barks whenever the car stops and she sees a person in another car. Thankfully I live my life so it is a rare occasion that they need to be in the car.
Plus I have a vet who has given me doggie valium for such occasions as the the 4th of July.
Even going for walks is rough on the Beagle/Shiba Inu. She is terrified of men who she doesn’t know’t if one walks by she moves as far away as possible, goes totally stiff and won’t take a step until he has passed.
In fact I am up at 4 in the morning because one has a “delicate digestive system” and just hacked on the floor, nothing like cleaning up dog puke, turning on lights and comforting the pooch to breakup your sleep cycle 😦
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Yuck (delicate digestive system). Dog owners all over the world empathize! My dog now loves car trips, but my daughter’s dog never did completely adjust. Her Border Collie would drool uncontrollably when she wasn’t vomiting. Very unpleasant. You can give dogs Bonine, as well as Dramamine. I’ve used both.
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I used to bring them to my parents, I simply don’t anymore. So really the only time they are in the car is when we go to the vets. It is a short drive but still eventful 😦
One I took the little one (7 pounds) to get her nails clipped at the groomer. I said you are going to need more than one person to do this, she laughed at me. Until the got a muzzle, 3 people and a harness contraption. I’m not sure what happened to her before we got her but apparently Italian Greyhound are slightly high strung and the smaller they are the more high stung they are.
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