<sigh> Since it’s such a chore to get all the Christmas decorations out and up, and since I’m traveling some this year – I had decided to NOT have a Christmas tree this year. I’ve never not had a tree. I remember the last tree when I was a teenager at home (yes, I can remember that long ago 🙂 ). My mother had decided no tree – too much work. I was mortified! My Dad and I went out and cut a tree and I decorated it. How could one not have a Christmas tree?
But this year just felt like more work than I could handle, so no tree. I’ve had an “elephant tree” for years, and a “Barbie tree”. Even have a “purple tree”. But it all just felt overwhelming this year. Here’s last years’s tree. Each ornament means something to me – and I love them all. Actually, my tree has looked pretty much the same for years – just an added ornament or two. And, that’s fine with me.
Did get my little outside tree out and ready – got the ‘big tree’ in the upstairs window all nice and lighted for the world to see. (The big one upstairs was really easy – I never took it down from last year.)
Got a few simple decorations out and lights up… But that big tree in the living room and ALL those other decorations that I usually put out just felt like more than I could handle.
Until yesterday!
I just couldn’t stand it anymore. I had to have a tree. I kept hearing one of my grandsons saying, well get a small tree. And actually, I already had a small tree – sits in my entryway all year long. So I moved it, plugged it in, got one small box of ornaments out and while I do not have a big tree this year….
I do have a tree – with some of my favorite ornaments on it.
And besides, I have two new ornaments this year. One is the adorable elephant sitting on the tree skirt and the other is a lovely handpainted one feaaturing a cardinal on one side and a blue jay on the other. Look closely and you can see it too. Both were gifts and I love them.
I feel your pain, Iris. Now that Katie has moved 10,000 miles away I have no one to help me with a tree, and while I ADORE Christmas trees and have ALWAYS had one (live ones), except the first year I moved to Brooklyn and it was so so depressing and I regretted it the whole month…they are hard for me to put up and take down by myself (I like a BIG tree, the biggest tree my ceilings will accommodate) AND to decorate…I’m really thinking this year I might just not. Katie will only be here 3 days at… Read more »
I sure feel your pain too, Bettye. It really is a lot of work getting the tree out of the box, put together and up – more energy than I had this year. I’ve had this little tree that I wound up decorating for years. I put lights on it when I got it and I usually just plug it in at Christmastime – so lighted tree ready to go. I think the nice thing about the small skinny tree – you can leave it up all year long as a entry decoration (or whatever). No kids here either –… Read more »