Just one more day before the release of Tangles and Tinsel. Be sure to enter below for a chance to win the $50 Amazon Gift Card!
Decorating for Christmas is a bittersweet experience for me. I love traditions, but when loved ones pass away, family dynamics shift in a way that are often the death of those traditions, too.
I remember several years ago, while my husband was at work, I turned on a Pandora station that played all those old (or maybe ancient) Christmas songs while I decorated our little log cabin. “Santa Claus is Coming to Town,” “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire,” “Little Drummer Boy,” “The Bells of St. Mary,”—and so many others. This was the music my parents would play on their stereo system—a piece of equipment as big as my sofa—at Christmas time when I was little.
There I was, flinging tinsel on the tree, singing at the top of my lungs, when I suddenly started bawling. Oh, how I missed my parents, my grandparents, my older brother, and the simplicity and innocence of Christmases when I was young. Christmas Eve with my dad’s side of the family; Christmas day with my mom’s. Grandpa playing the piano, and all of us gathered around it singing. Yes, we were one of those families.
Still, I love decorating for the holiday. I always wait until after Thanksgiving because I don’t want to rush it. Now that we’re in a larger home, I’ve expanded the décor, but the tree stays the same.
I’m not one to change out the ornaments every year (or even every decade). I still have one a friend of my parents gave me in 1977. The only reason I know it’s that old is because the year is on it. Handmade ornaments my kids’ piano teacher made for me every year, handpicked ornaments my father-in-law gave me (all of them some variation of Santa and golfing), and those I acquire year after year. The tree gets pretty crowded, but I love it. It’s a history of my family-life.
It was only a few years ago, I started a new decorating tradition—decking out my dining room table. I wanted to give you just a little taste of it with the video below. The one tradition I have no intention of discarding is waiting until Thanksgiving to decorate for Christmas. After I completed this video for y’all, I put all the fall décor back on the table for another few days. Silly, I know, since Thanksgiving is literally this week, but I just couldn’t leave it out.
Last Friday night, we were driving home from dinner with friends, and I couldn’t believe the number of lit trees in all the windows. Maybe people like to have it all up for Thanksgiving, and I get that. Even with a lot of my family gone, I’m still a traditionalist at heart.
Here is another chance to enter for the $50 Amazon Gift Card. If you missed Tuesday’s post, Wednesday’s post, Thursday’s post, Friday’s post, Saturday’s post, or yesterday’s post, be sure to visit them to enter for that gift card. The more entries, the better your chances.
I will be celebrating the release of Tangles and Tinsel by taking over my Celebrate Lit’s Facebook page tomorrow. I’d love it if you would join me for insights into the book, lots of fun, and the chance to win more prizes.
Comments 8
Jennifer, oh I love love your table. And the decorations a plus. I usually for Christmas put the Nativity set in the middle. And a long sometimes with poinsettias. For Thanksgiving I put up my blessing basket with two Indians on the side. I’ll share a picture on Facebook. Blessings.
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I would love to see it! Thank you.
Thank you for sharing. Miss you both!
Author
We miss you, too, Chris. We pray all is going well for you and your family.
Thank you for sharing!
Author
You’re welcome.
I am about 1/2 way through Tangles and Tinsel. Of course it is very enjoyable. I know the feeling of missing our childhood Christmases. I was there with you. Over the years traditions have changed several times. This year since I am having surgery the day after Christmas we are only putting up the ceramic Christmas tree. I won’t see my kids or grandkids except by FaceTime. But I have my new husband’s family who are close and our new traditions. Maybe next year I will decorate more like I was able to do last year.
I used the same ornements for over 50 years. I gave some from Germany to my youngest son. Now I have a small tree with lights already on it with silver and blue bulbs. We do not have many over fir Christmas now. We stay home by ourselves. It us nice. I still miss the family and friends coming over.