Mark Twain

"Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn't do than by the ones you did do ...
Explore. Dream. Discover." Mark Twain

Monday, November 27, 2017

All Decked Out

A quick peak around the Christmas decorations in place for this year.

It starts with the Christmas Tree.  It always starts with the tree.  This artificial tree is about 2 years old.  It  is a smaller slim line tree that works good in small spaces.  It is pre-lite and simple construction.  It holds about 1/2 the ornaments I have.  My goal:  some time in the next two years get a table top model tree.  My perfect three would be a about 3-4 feet high that would sit on a table by the window.  It would be on a stand that maybe plays music and rotates.  Pre-lite would be good.  I keep looking and nothing seems to be just right - so until it is - this tree will be part of my Christmas.


The tree decorations are all meaningful.  The little gold house in the picture below is the a miniature replica of the old time train station located in historic Ellicott City.  About two years ago Ellicott City was assaulted by a major flash flood - devastating the small town and killing one person.  Having withstood many floods in the past, many historic, the town has come back.  The gold tree ornament is a way to support the rebuilding.


The Pug Cookie Jar holds my grand dogs' cookies.  My dear grand dog Grimace, a pug with a heart of gold, has long since passed away.  I miss him every day.  But he is mentioned when I give out cookies to the grand dogs who replaced him.  "Who wants one of Grimace's cookies?  Only good dogs get one of his cookies."

The small lighted Christmas Tree beside the cookie jar was made by my mom during her 'ceramic painting' phase.  This kind of lighted tree is dated compared to more stylish decorating options available today.  But this little tree will always be a part of my Christmas.  It reminds me of her every time I look at it.  And I miss her every day as well.


This little collection of lighted houses belonged to my mother-in-law.  
It has been some time since I had them out for the holiday, 
but this year I wanted her represented in our celebration.


The other side of the lighted house display as it faces the kitchen.  


This pug ornament, a gift from my daughter, demonstrations
 so truthfully the fun loving nature of Pugs.  


My daughter and her fearless companion, Milo, 
(in the tan sweater that I made for him this season), helped with the holidays lights on the deck.  


Our tree is a mix of dog and cat ornaments. 
The two dog ornaments below show Meathead (left) and Milo (right).
Meathead was my first grand dog.  He was such a dear dog.  


This final ornament was made by my mom.  She loved crafts.


This is another of my mother-in-law's lighted houses.  
It sits in a naturally dark corner of the kitchen counter.


This final picture shows just two Santas from a large collection of Santas I once owned.  Collections became a thing of the past when we downsized.  But I kept a few of my favorite Santas.


When the kids were young, I used to decorate the whole first floor of the townhouse.  All the rooms. Regular knick knacks got packed away and everything was Christmas themed.  That was a major chore.  The decorations filled many many boxes when stored during the year and filled an entire large basement closet.  And my efforts were modest compared to some people I have known.  My neighbor below me pays for storage for her Christmas decorations.  I am sure she is not the only one who does this.

When the thrilling rush of the season began to fade during my mom's care years,  Christmas decorating faded too.  My heart wasn't in it.  Many of those items were finally downsized out of the house - holding onto only those items that had real meaning.   I could never to back to the Holiday Wonderland-style of decorating I once aimed for.  Now I am content with much less.  And because there is less, I appreciate each item that survived the purge so much more.

So how do you celebrate the season ... if you do celebrate!

9 comments:

happyone said...

Your tree is beautiful and how nice that you have those special holiday items to treasure.
I love the two santas.
I have a small tree (the top of a tree) that fits perfectly in the picture window in the front room.

Priscilla said...

I love your mom's ceramic Christmas tree. It doesn't matter if it's in style or not. It's festive and holds a memory of her. I like her little cross stitch ornament, too, for the same reason.

Cynthia said...

I love the stories behind your decorations. I think it is natural to make memories when you are young and your family is growing, and then celebrate and treasure them in later years. I only have kept the decorations of the memories I treasure most, too. Getting them out each year, handling them, and looking at them for a few weeks is one of the best parts of Christmas.

Linda said...

So nice to see how your are decorating your home! I use to do quite a bit of decorating but in recent years,not much at all. Last year I had a Christmas bush comprised of branches removed from an evergreen in our yard. Not sure yet what this year will be - I do have 2 small "wooly" trees I made so there will be something!

Michelle said...

It's all lovely! Brian is getting a Jackson ornament this year; I need to have a Dozer one made.

Carolyn said...

I think it is marvelous that all of your decorations are meaningful. Enjoy the season with all of the beauty and memories surrounding you!

Paula said...

Very nice decorations. I will be downsizing mine too. That little ceramic Christmas tree reminds me of my mom too. Sadly my brothers didn't keep hers!

Lois said...

How much time you must have spent paring down your ornaments and decorations to just those you loved before moving. When I think of how large a house you used to have it boggles my mind that you were able to pare down as much as you did in so little time. Your new home all done up for Christmas is lovely and suits you well.

Lynne said...

There was a day when a live tree graced each room in our home.
Boxes upon boxes, bin after bin made their way from the attic
into the great room where I would begin decorating.

That was yesterday . . . a much smaller version exists today . . .
The best part . . . the treasures remain . . . often gracing their ususal places . . .
A smaller, non real tree is our only tree.
Instead of trees, I go to the woods behind our house
and cut white pine, spruce, cedar, fresh boxwood, holly
and fill vase after vase of the fragrant greens, berries . . .

Thank you for your inspiring post . . , I am right in the throes unpacking
Christmas 2017 . . . Your post gives me joy . . . off I go to my inspirations.

Happy December Days Elaine . . .