When do you put up your Christmas tree? (new house, pine)

[CoastalMaine]

Good for you Corgi!!! I don't know how you put up with that through your kids growing up. I'm too 'onery to take that kind of pressure. Gets my feathers up and out comes what I'm thinkin. lol Reps for you.

Happy retirement!!!! For the way YOU want to live your life, reps on the way!

Feels like a fresh breath of air, doesn't it!

Originally Posted by corgis

Our 9th tree is up, lighted and decorated. Christmas ceramic village is up and lighted. Annalee Mobilitee doll display is up and lighted. Mantel is decorated and above the mantel is the most gorgeous wreath I've ever seen, it came in the mail today. Mensaguy is going to put white lights around it.

I completely understand about wanting to break those traditions that don't seem very meaningful any more. I broke one of those traditions the other day. For at least 55 years I have had to bring my family or me and my parents when I was younger to my aunts house for Christmas Eve dinner. Same food every year, same table settings, everybody sits in the same seats as the year before, etc. I have not spent Christmas Eve in my own home for longer than I can remember. There were years when I tried to break the tradition but both my mother and my aunt know how to guilt trip me every time. This year as I turned 62, I decided to break the tradition and I'm sure I hurt my aunts feelings but it's my time now - I did it her way for 55 years. I feel no guilt.

I also broke the Thanksgiving tradition this year by deciding not to have a group of people over and just do a small dinner for mensaguy, me, my son and of course Daddy. My aunt was not happy over that either. But I feel so very free by breaking those apron strings that held me in place through guilt and not enjoying Christmas with my own. It's gonna be a great Christmas and it was a great Thanksgiving.

[Maineah]

Originally Posted by Bydand

Tree usually goes up two weeks before Christmas and I would have it out the door on the 26th, but the DW and kids always outvote me and it stays around for another week until New Years eve. This year we are taking the boys out to one of the tree farms around here and cutting our own. $15 for any size and type if you cut it, $20 if they cut it. We are putting a 9 footer in the Family room and if I can talk the others into it I want a Frasier Fir this year. They lit the Community tree this week and there was a nice photo in the paper of #3 son stretching up to put an ornament on it as high as he could reach. The town has the Kindergartners decorate the lower part of the tree and then this week-end all the families in town can come and hang a family decoration on the tree. Kind of a neat tradition here.

That's great! It's $35.00 to cut it yourself where we go! Robbers!

[chaosX5]

We will put our tree up next weekend and will take it down January 6 which is Feast of the Epiphany. We get a live tree so it's usually a fire hazard by the time it comes down We keep the other decorations pretty simple inside and some lights outside. I absolutely love Christmas and the whole season, but having said that I really understand why some people have a hard time with Christmas...............way too many expectations. Christmas has been hijacked by commercialism (IMHO) and it's nearly unrecognizable from what my parents experienced in their childhood (Dad is 84)

Again, it's just my opinion but people shouldn't have guilt for keeping it simple. And it's great if you can let go of that guilt Simple is how Christmas used to be. There was not massive present buying and Martha style entertaining (though I love Martha!) It was just simple gift giving, getting together with loved ones, food and a celebration

Oh well, lengthy......but just some thoughts.

[tcrackly]

For the past few years my DH and I have put one new ornament on a small balsam in the wooded wetlands just sight of the road for trail hikers. Ice storm took the tree a couple years ago so I tried to put battery operated lights on a tree on the shore in sight of most of the residents across the pond. I think I'll continue that tradition, but I need to find a more powerful light string to be seen at night. I'm thinking of going solar. I have some solar Xmas lights that stay up all year...a little incentive to smile when I see them . Maybe they'll encourage grumpy strangers to smile.

[tankratt]

Well the tree goes up two weeks before Christmas if it is real and the day after thanksgiving if we use the fake one. No tree up yet so I guess the it is a real one this year. We spent Thanksgiving with my mom and dad in Seattle this year and I put up mom's tree the day after, while the wife and mom did black friday.

When she got home she was truely surprised, the tree hasn't been up for two years and that was because"she wanted it that way" a real Bah Humbug she would lead me to belive, but saw right through that when she saw it lit up and everything on it an the gifts she had wrapped already under it. She was happy. Then about a hour later the neighbor comes over to complain about the preassure she is under now because she pulled up and saw a lit up tree in there front window and we are making her look bad. lol

[Elcarim]

Originally Posted by Maineah

That's great! It's $35.00 to cut it yourself where we go! Robbers!

We've paid $35-75 at our tree farm the last several years, just to be able to cut it outselves and stay as close to "natural" as we're able around here. The trees aren't all that nice, and they're scotch pine, which is kind of yucky.

We bought our tree at Walmart this year for simplicity. They had 5-6' Douglas Firs this week for $25. I think prices are lower this year because of the economy. That same tree was $35 last year.

I'd so much rather have something straight out of the woods, even it looks like Charlie Brown chose it. I'm a nature girl - that's how I roll!

[AustinB]

My Festivus Pole is almost polished up enough to put in place.

[countrylv22]

THANK YOU FOR THIS THREAD MAINEAH!

I am with ELI LOVE the season starting in October ALL the way

to January!!!


I personally, LOVE CHRISTMAS and I start decorating the week

of THANKSGIVING, and I like to leave everything up until after

the FEAST of the EPIPHANY in January. Everything is still going strong

until at least January 6!


When I was growing up, my family started decorating the Friday

after THANKSGIVING!!

And as much as I love to travel, I love to stay put during the HOLIDAYS

to avoid additional stress. I love visiting friends & relatives in the

area. I also love to try doing some charity work during the Holidays.

So, its hard to travel and really enjoy the Holidays!

MERRY CHRISTMAS & BEST OF WISHES

TO ALL OF MY MAINE FRIENDS!!!YOU ARE ALL ANGELS!!

Take care,

((HUGS))

Countrylv22

Originally Posted by Elcarim

Trees started going up the week before Thanksgiving here. When I was growing up, we always went my birthday weekend - 12/10 - and that was our tree decorating weekend. As the years go by, everyone has started decorating earlier and earlier. Now, the big thing here is to have the Christmas decor up for Thanksgiving dinner. I know it seems so out of whack! I'm happy to change that practice!!

The first weekend of December is good for me. We put our tree up last night, instead of waiting for this weekend, because we're having the girls' birthday party tomorrow, and I wanted the house to be decorated. They love their Christmas season birthdays.

P.S: HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOUR GIRLS EL!! I hope it lots of FUN!!

ENJOY!!LOTS OF CAKE PLEASE!!!

[retiredtinbender]

Originally Posted by AustinB

My Festivus Pole is almost polished up enough to put in place.

A Festivus for the Restivus. Good ol' Frank.

The wife champs at the bit Dec. 1st but I make her wait until the second weekend. Nice fresh tree from the Mustard Mill and the house smells wonderfully of balsam fir. I love the smell of balsam. I can always pick them out. It's the one I lean against! No lights. they burned out 7 years ago and she likes it without now. She says it looks Victorian and beautifull. I have to agree. We take it down begrudgingly around mid-January.

[janetvj]

I'm putting my tree up this weekend, mainly because it's the only free weekend I have in December. If I was using a real tree, I'd probably wait another week or so. I take everything down shortly after New Year's Day. I've found that as I've gotten older, my stuff stays up a little longer. I've accumulated so much in the way of decorations over the years that it's become a lot more effort to decorate, so I keep it up a bit longer.