My husband, who is nearly a decade older than me, remembers the boiling candle bulbs well. And I had *no* idea that the tinsel was lead . . . no wonder you don't see it in the stores anymore! (I told Mr. L that it was because everyone had suddenly acquired good taste ::g::) And I do remember being corrected for throwing it by the handful onto our tree. My mother likes it too, but it had to be put on sparingly, and hung strand by strand. No wonder I grew to despise it. :-P
I *love* the story of Mickey!! And the handmade lace snowflakes are so special (that must have been a lovely tree), as is the walnut (I'd love to see a picture if you still have it). It's the things made by those we love that make this season what it is, in my opinion.
Absolutely lovely, and so are your traditions. I'm with you on the lights (apologies to Mr. L). My sister is an artist with tree lights, and she insists that your way is the only way: hundreds of lights wound deep within the tree as well as on the outer branches
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My brother was the light artist back then. He wrapped the cord around the branches so that you really couldn't see wire at all. I got the joy of removing them after the tree was all dried out and prickly as the dickens. It took a couple hours and my hands got all scratched up. I think that's why he did it, frankly...
This was a wonderful reply - how generous you are to share all these lovely memories! I absolutely *adore* the troll star . . . that's just terrific!! And I bet your son, since he's so artistic, has made some really special things for your tree. Miss M has made a bunch, too, but my favorites remain the colored pasta stringed 'wreaths' and the little green felt tree whose 'ornaments' she made by dipping her fingers into glitter paint and pressing them on the felt, all made when she was a toddler.
Your mother and mine had very different ideas about the tinsel . . . I got reprimanded if I flung it on. I don't know if you've ever read the picture book called Aunty Claus, but there's a line from that story ("You must drape the tinsel, darling - never throw it on.") that makes me think of her every time we read it aloud. ::g
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We've little fairy lights in the tree, white ones, just around the branches. I've never even seen a tree with lights all the way in, such as you and kellychambliss describe
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Oh, I *love* your angel story!! How wonderful that you still have them! I have an uncooperative fairy who must be related to your gold and white angel, so I fool her by finding a branch with a large space and hang her underneath, facing the trunk. Inevitably, she ends up twisting so that she's facing out. Hee
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We have a real tree - he likes spiky, I like less pspiky - we alternate. He doesn't like tinsel; I grew up with it - we compromise with bead chains. New lights last year - tiny LED ones that twinkle - we both like them. Ornaments - all mean something - a place, a person, an event, a time in our lives. Very precious.
Marriage is all about compromise - except when it comes to Christmas trees. XD Your ornament collection sounds like ours - full of beautiful memories. Your new lights sound lovely . . . considering the large carbon footprint of my gazillion lights, I should probably replace them all with LEDs.
That is an absolutely gorgeous tree, both beautiful and warm, although I doubt I'd have the patience to string the lights with the care you describe. But I love Christmas trees and multi-colored lights and ornaments and the smell of pine, music (carefully selected) and eggnog and mulled wine and holiday paper and glittering ribbons, the weary, nostalgic smiles on the faces of adults and the gleeful wonder and rapacity of small children.
Tinsel was banished the year after one not-very-bright cat went wild over the shimmery strings and ate a bunch, which meant we had to extract it from his other end. Ho ho ho.
Tinsel was banished the year after one not-very-bright cat went wild over the shimmery strings and ate a bunch, which meant we had to extract it from his other end. Ho ho ho.
Oh. My. We have a tinselavore, too, though his favored stuff is narrow curling ribbon and metallic bag stuffings. Lucky for us, he just barfs it up!
So, what music do you favor, my dear? I'm all over the map, from The 12 Pains of Christmas and Who Spiked the Eggnog to Vivaldi and Anonymous 4 and everything in between (though I tend to skip the teen pop stuff ::g::). It depends on what mood I'm in.
The scary thing about tinsel is that it can get tangled in the intestines, which then requires surgical intervention. It wasn't so much distaste as alarm that enforced the ban
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I *love* the story of Mickey!! And the handmade lace snowflakes are so special (that must have been a lovely tree), as is the walnut (I'd love to see a picture if you still have it). It's the things made by those we love that make this season what it is, in my opinion.
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I got the joy of removing them after the tree was all dried out and prickly as the dickens. It took a couple hours and my hands got all scratched up. I think that's why he did it, frankly...
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Your mother and mine had very different ideas about the tinsel . . . I got reprimanded if I flung it on. I don't know if you've ever read the picture book called Aunty Claus, but there's a line from that story ("You must drape the tinsel, darling - never throw it on.") that makes me think of her every time we read it aloud. ::g ( ... )
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Our tree is a real one, about as tall as I am.
We've little fairy lights in the tree, white ones, just around the branches. I've never even seen a tree with lights all the way in, such as you and kellychambliss describe ( ... )
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I read it from the time I was six until I left my parents' house. I'd kind of forgotten about that 'till just now.
L
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Hahaha! Keep those angels in their place, that's what I say.
I love your ornament traditions (and the spiced wine/Dickens, of course).
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We have a real tree - he likes spiky, I like less pspiky - we alternate. He doesn't like tinsel; I grew up with it - we compromise with bead chains. New lights last year - tiny LED ones that twinkle - we both like them. Ornaments - all mean something - a place, a person, an event, a time in our lives. Very precious.
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Tinsel was banished the year after one not-very-bright cat went wild over the shimmery strings and ate a bunch, which meant we had to extract it from his other end. Ho ho ho.
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Oh. My. We have a tinselavore, too, though his favored stuff is narrow curling ribbon and metallic bag stuffings. Lucky for us, he just barfs it up!
So, what music do you favor, my dear? I'm all over the map, from The 12 Pains of Christmas and Who Spiked the Eggnog to Vivaldi and Anonymous 4 and everything in between (though I tend to skip the teen pop stuff ::g::). It depends on what mood I'm in.
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