Well, here it is Thanksgiving Day, the day we get to wipe the gravy off our chins, and turn our full attention to Christmas! Yesterday, I put up our Christmas tree. The earliest ever! I told Mary, "Let's think outside the box this year". Little did I know..... I carried the platform, tree & trimmings down from the attic, and began. When I plugged the "pre-lit" tree in, the top half was not lit. After my feeble attempts at "trouble-shooting" this Chinese faux creation, I was left with more trouble and less shooting. I decided to take drastic action. I threw out the 6 ft tree, and went out and bought a new 7 ft pre-lit one. Now in all fairness the old one was 4 or 5 years old and well beyond its life-span. It was the right move! Mary and I laugh about how we carry on the tradition of the original Mary & Joe, on that first Christmas. What wonderful Parents they were to our new born Savior. What responsibilities they shouldered. I have always seen Joseph as "God's Man on the scene"! Another change, was that because the new tree was taller, we did not use the platform, instead surrounding the base of the tree with stuffed animals instead of the traditional yard and village. So, we are excited to see what Christmas will look like this year!
That is one awesomely beautiful tree, @Joe Riley , and putting it in a doorway is certainly unique also. You must have another way to get from one side of the door to the other, because it would be hard to get past that Christmas tree each time you want to go through there. Your home looks so cozy and nice, and perfect for the Christmas tree. Bobby put up some of the outside lights that we got before; but we don't have any place for a Christmas tree in here except for one of those little 2-foot sized ones. It came from the dollar store and the lights twinkle, so even if it is little, it is festive and we do enjoy that every year. Thank you for sharing your pictures with us !
Under our tree, we have a small bear (Bear-In-A-Can), Taffy, the cat (Replacement for our Calico, after she died), a Hedgehog, an Ape (a favorite of mine), a Lamb, and a Baby monkey with big eyes. We also have Phil the Groundhog, a Teddy bear with a Baby bear, Bessy the Cow, a Bunny and Joe, the Crow. and last but not least, there is a Fish (pillow) and a Snow Owl.
One of my newest, Christmas favorites is "O Fir Tree Dark", sung by Bing Crosby. It is the best! The tune is from an old Danish carol called, "Det kimer nu til jelefest".
Love your story Joe!! How cool, Mary and Joe Now I have to go look through the thread to see if you have more photos!!
Some years back, I bought a series of 12 hand crafted & painted wooden store fronts, making a village. We used them to circle the tree holder, to cover it up. Since we are not using them for the tree this year, I displayed them on top of my desk, in our log cabin room. I added my five cast iron assortment of animal drawn wagons.
Who says we can't still have toys I LOVE your collection It's fun to see what folks have gathered over the years.