Thursday, December 04, 2008

Christmas Trees

Oh Tannenbaum, oh tannenbaum...

First,  Christmas trees should be real!  I just don't understand the plastic tree!?  Think about it ... PLASTIC TREE... tell me a more huge oxymoron.

Our tree went up Saturday and in all it's tacky lights and home made Christmas ornaments glory it is amazing.  The smell of Frasier Fur hits you right when you enter the house and the ambience while sipping coffee and watching CNN at 5 am can't be beat.  When I think of cozy I think of a 9 foot pine tree in my living room with 100 little stories to tell our children hanging from every branch.  

"This is the ornament your Daddy and I bought at Cade's Cove on our honeymoon."
"This is the ornament I made in first grade when I was a Brownie and so proud to have my picture taken."
"This is your Daddy's first ornament, 1978, what is "Precious Moments?  Oh just a little collector's cult popular once, I'm sorry the little boy's huge eyes freak you out."
"This is a rocking chair ornament that your Auntie Mere and I used to play with until Moomps and Pa made us hang it back on the tree and go to bed."  
"This is the ornament I bought when I went on a mission trip in South Dakota... that's Mount Rushmore... spin it around, the president's are wearing Santa caps!"
"This is my favorite Wedgewood ornament, see how the lights shine through the glass and make it look extra pretty?"
"This is the ornament the nurses made for you when you were 42 days old and still living at the hospital... see how tiny your footprint was?"

What are your favorite Christmas tree memories... speak up "Sparky" if you are reading this... was it when Uncle Lewis lit the first tree ablaze or was it when the squirrel flew out and attacked your entire family?

7 comments:

Jason said...

Most of my favorite moments almost all involve my Grandadddy Miller.
He LOVED christmas and i am guessing thats where i get from also...
From the time I was old enough I remember helping put up their tree(always fake) but its the memory of him sitting in his chair pointing with his cane as to where we needed more ornaments....the thought of him trying to get the lights to work ...Pery Como playing on the turntable out in the hall, even in later years we still used the record player! Hearing him tell us that "this years tree is the best looking one ever". Gotta admit, I am sitting here listening to christmas music with tears in my eyes right now...SIGH

Heather said...

I can't stand the smell of pine. *ducks from flying ornaments* I would prefer we skip the tree altogether, but Corey insists we have one. I am waiting till the day we can afford a pre-lit tree that folds into a box.

Yes, my middle name is Scrooge. ;)

But, your time with the tree and the girls is so sweet.

Sarah Beth said...

I am obsessed with real Christmas trees and have never understood getting a fake one...why would one do this unless they were allergic??? It is one of the great things about Christmas it makes it feel so warm in cozy in your house. I however am not into old ornaments...I am weird and ever since I have my own house I have become very particular about things I like the tree to look a certain way with the big bow at the top flowing down the tree...I don't mind a few sentimental ornaments but I want the first thing you see when you look at the tree is pretty red, purple, gold etc ornaments! But I do love this time of year!

jackie said...

I love sentimental ornaments too! I can't wait to put up our tree and decorate. The first Christmas after the wedding my Mom gave me all of the christmas ornaments that she had bought for me over the years (we got one ornament every year). So now I even have the ornament that was embroidered for me the year I was born!

Laurel said...

I LOVE this post!! especially your "explanations" of the ornaments.

We have always cut down cedar trees off of our property at home in GA and you better belive that in 25+ years, 100% of them are serious "charlie brown trees"...as in you can see straight through them, there are several holes and are never a traditional "christmas tree" shape, more like an oval. But we LOVE them. Last year was the first year I've ever had to buy a Christmas tree...it was really weird and seemed a little bit sacreligious, lol...but it just made me appreciate our childhood tree tradition even more!

Mary said...

I really miss having our own tree since we've been in grad school. First, there is no room in our tiny place and two, we spend most of the time surrounding Christmas down south ANYWAY. But, I still miss it. Great post.

Also - HAPPY ANNIVERSARY!

Mary Tyler S. said...

annn...thissss was the ornament your aunt nyler gave to your mama....