Christmas trees

Well, I've got the tree up and mostly decorated.  Getting back to Jason's original questions - real?  Unfortunately, no.  First fake tree since the mid 80's when Tim had trains for a few years, and we set them up under the tree.  The needles would have wreaked havoc on the train set. 

We've always had a fresh tree, but they get pricier every year, and by the time the get shipped to Phx from the Pacific Northwest tree farms, they're already pretty dry.  My DH has been wanting a fake tree for years, but me, the stubborn old traditionalist resisted.  But last year I gave in and found an expensive one, for half price at Home Depot, so he's pleased.  But looks a little faker than it did set up in the store.  But it's pre-lit, although I added more lights.  I like to be able to read by the tree.  LOL. And it's not nearly big enough, because, sentimental fool that I am, I think I've still got every ornament that anyone's ever made or given me (probably about 1 million, lol).  I have all the ones people gave to my son too.  But it looks good.  And this year's challenge will be Denzil-proofing it.  lol.

Ornaments - they bring back so many memories.  My sisters-in-law and I went thru a spell in the 80's where we did a lot of hand crafted stuff.  So I have a ton of unique pieces.  And every year, my aunt would send my son an ornament attached to his gift.  We still have the little brass soccer player from the year he played soccer, the brass football player they year he was into flag football.  The little Santa playing the sax from when he was taking sax lessons.  The little wooden newsboy from one of the years he delivered papers.  I have the Ojo de Dios he made in first grade that gets pride of place near the top.  And so many others too numerous to name.  HIs life's story is on our tree.

How bout some of your memories?

Uh, oh, I'm on a roll. LOL.  The Christmas spirit is sinking in, I guess.

When I was a child in the sixties we had an entire village with the HO train set my brother got for his first Christmas in '57.  He still has the set - probably saving it as his nest egg.  I'm sure it's worth a pile of money today.  The trains and village were set up on a platform under ther tree and I can still remember my dad painstakingly tacking down the tracks.

Our tree was always one of the silver aluminum ones, that had a light you shine on it, and in front of the light was a panel with diferent color plastic "windows."  The panel rotated and as it did, the light would shine thru each of the windows and turn the tree different colors.  I can remember wanting a real tree with lights, and my parents' excuse was we couldn't have are real tree due to the trains, which was true of course.  But I think it was also their excuse because they really liked the aluminum tree.  They were very trendy in the 60's. lol

Well, Ruth, I just finished off the "real" one, number 8 tree I've decorated so far, I'm getting glad it's over with for this year, I swear this one is bigger then the city's example of an tree. I'm guessing in the 12 to 15 foot range...I have what they call an cathereral ceiling. Daughter in-law's cousin came by, he was short and 13 and now  he's tall and 14..and I do mean tall...I think he's grew about 3 feet in the last year...maybe 4...it's startaling to me.  Ok, this tree is white clear lights and red decoations overcoming other colors. handmade angels, clothes pin santas, crocheted snowflakes, sparkling assorted bulbs, includes plaids, cluster of red berry "picks" in the tree branches, topper is still my son's baby night-light that twirls, red garland.  Livingroom has an "Santa" theme to it, and white classic tea dishes sitting around and the rest is natural decorations, woodland...stairway is red poisetta's, and they are not real, as they are posionous, and we have an 4 year old yet.. I won't do any fresh stuff until next weekend...like cedar, holly, etc.  I sure do have an lot of stuff I can't find at all this year also. A lot of that was my "old time" scenes in decorations. So, one last time, kitchen, wooden soldiers, diningroom, nativty set and poinsetta dishes, candles, daughter in-law and son's room, is multiple decorated tree, plushy type plaid comforter, table for cookies and milk and reading books to the kids, while in bed with them, grandaughter's room, pink purple, and lime green tree...grandson alumium tree and two snowmen, andtouches of blue with white lights, other grandson, batman theme, gold and blue bulbs, multi-colored lights, and I still have those batman cookies to make, my room, is the Le MaxChristmas village around an sleigh bed, tree is muti-colored with bubble lights, and my hubby's room is fiber optic tree with an blue "Mountain" fabric looking ridge next to his tree and down the entire table all sorts of small games, scout stuff, drinks, card games, wall darts, travel coffee mugs, vibrating slippers, shot glasses and an table golf game, "survival" game, his collector beer mugs, and an huge stuffed white bear at the end of this blue printed mountain ridge...which is really plastic bins of various sizes covered up. The material is like an comforter quilt so it's lightly puffy...with an small design in it makes it look like an snow flurry in the material. Bathrooms are angels, gold poisetta, and copperish burnish foil wall-paper, and green  asessories,  the other bathroom is old time scenes on boxes with old time wooden beads and red poistetta's. That room is mostly lighted fish tank and jacuzzi tub also...the outisde is the new "led" electricity saving lights, and snowman, and small tree and door wreath, and an small deer, and an Christmas star that the center says "Merry Chirstmas" and then the lights along the outline of the house...it has an drak blue/and white highlights look to it. That's it Ruth, it's been an busy last few weeks. I've stopped to make goodies twice now also. It's about time, I'm stating to wear down in energy around here. I've done about 70 per cent of it myself. I did the back porch before Holloween got here in Christmas. It serves as an "smoking room", my hubby don't allow smoking in the house. I cold still use to get some bird feed though and set up feeders on the kids small porchway where they can all see them "feeding" from the patio door at the end of their bed also. Kids enjoy that. We are suppose to get out first snow of the year tomarrow.  

Well, I can't...I'm suppose to be cutting back on some of this stuff..and I am, it's taking me some time to do it. I would go to someplace else if it were decorated, but the places don't decorate like they use to...esp places where you can stay overnight and enjoy the lights. Very "cut and dry" so as to say. I asked my boss one time at Boston Market if we could decorate the place with an tree that fit the stores logo theme in black, red and white lights off to one side of the restruant and was told "NO"..that it might offend someone's sense of religion. Maybe that's why they ended up closing the store, not enough "heart" in the world over "profit"...and they weren't making that anyway. So goes! Putting this stuff up makes me re-account what I think Christmas is all about also. You know, about an child born that gave up his life for the betterment of others. For an world an bit kinder and loving in an humanitarian way.