We don’t do Christmas in a small way. My husband could compete with Ogre in his holiday lights. One year I called Florida Power and Light, inquiring about a power pole for our front yard. You cannot blow dry your hair in the guest bathroom when the Christmas lights are on or we lose power to that side of the house. That was even with the electrician giving us a new circuit breaker just for lights. (The power pole was too much money...)
My worst fear? That there will be a late hurricane one year, hitting us in December although it is not hurricane season, requiring us to take down 200,000 Christmas lights, reindeer, and door decorations. We are known to be The Griswalds of the neighborhood. For years, when we were truly at our prime and not bogged down and tired from hurricanes and life in general, kids would stop us in October babbling about our home and when we would start decorating.
And inside my home? I am like Hubba (my Mom). Everything gets decorated. In Hubba’s house, there are Christmas towels, pictures are replaced by pictures of Christmas scenes, Christmas pillows reign, and the regular dishes are replaced the day after Thanksgiving with Christmas dishes.
‘Tis the same here. I went so far as when I got married, a November wedding, I registered for Christmas ornaments and my Nikko Christmas China. I just put at the bottom of my registry, “Christmas ornaments”. Let the giver decide and that first Christmas, we had a very full tree, which was 15 feet tall, by the way. We still use those same ornaments, 14 years later. People thought it was fun and enjoyed buying us things for our First Christmas.
So my Christmas dishes are out and this afternoon my husband spent two hours hauling out the Christmas decorations from the attic. He is very organized with it, all Christmas decorations in big plastic containers, clear so we can see what is inside. There was of course the obligatory cursing heard from the top of the attic stairs, followed by a “I CANNOT BELIEVE it is Christmas already! Didn’t was JUST DO THIS?!!!” Heh.
This year’s dilemma? Christmas sheets. You see, I change out ALL OF OUR SHEETS to Christmas sheets. I have something more adult in our bedroom, something in the burgundy color scheme so it matches with the Navy/Burgundy jewel tones we have done our Master bedroom in.
The boys? They have flannel sheets decorated with strings of Christmas lights and the pillow each has an enormous reindeer. I bought them from Domestications, eons ago. When we had just two wee lads, I bought two twin sets. When the rabbit died yet again, and I had the boys sleeping in one room, a bunk that slept three, with two in a double on the bottom, I managed to find a double set.
But now, we added on to the house and I have them each in their own twin bed and I am on the hunt for another twin set. Do you think I can find one? NO. Not only do they not make them anymore, it appears to be impossible to JUST BUY CHRISTMAS SHEETS from Domestications. I must now buy… a bed in a bag.
I don’t want a bed in a bag. I don’t want a frickin’ comforter that I must store for 11 months out of the year. I JUST WANT THE SHEETS.
And they don’t have them. And the theme of this Christmas must be Christmas Puppies. I’m seeing those suckers all over the place.
I want ‘kiddish’, but I’ll pass on the puppies. Besides the puppies come with that damn comforter.
I found one called ‘Northern Lights’, but it just did not seem like enough ‘fun’. I want holiday cheer. Dammit. Plus, the cross stitch looking ‘heart’ will get a definite thumbs down from the boys. Any of them.
Then I found one called a ‘ski scene set’. It was pure white. Whose idea of a joke is that?
So by the time you read this, in the morning as I post at night, I am sure a resolution to this will have been found. It appears the reindeer is not the way to go this year, but we will not be having Christmas Puppies. I’m looking at Snowmen this year. Snowmen or Penguins.
I shall forgo the comforters. Flannel is hot enough in S. Fl.
That's how I normally am. This year is killing me. My goal is the christmas bed sets and I know exactly what I want. Mama is making the comforter for me. Hehehe. I don't go all out with the outside decor - too hard to do by myself. But inside...yeah, all the pictures come down and get replaced, christmas china, towels...the works.
I think we are twins seperated at birth...LOL
Posted by: Tammi at November 27, 2005 10:22 PMContagion's Dad used to put up so many decorations that Com-Ed sent them a Christmas card.
I'm not kidding.
Me, I've got an eight foot inflatable santa and that's going to do it... the INSIDE now, THAT will be decorated...
Posted by: Graumagus at November 27, 2005 10:58 PMI will put up a string of lights in my grove of live oaks next weekend and that will be the extent of my decorating this year.
I was thinking of geting a cast iron snowman and wiring it up and leaving it hot during the night to break a couple of dogs from coming into my yard after I go to bed. Figured when they cocked a leg on it they would get a Merry Christmas present from me. They have been leaving big smoking presents for me to clean up for about a week now.
Posted by: GUYK at November 27, 2005 11:26 PMNuts, I just wrote out a big long comment, then my finger hit the wrong key, and it cancelled it!
The gist of it was, we tend to get a Christmas tree delivered from a local Christmes tree farm, but apart from that we don't do much decorating, although we have Christmas candles that I like to put out. I love outside Christmas lights, but with a two storey house I think it would be dangerous to put them up (or maybe I'm just being a wuss!)
Posted by: Amanda at November 27, 2005 11:28 PMAs Grau already pointed out. My father was the reigning christmas light king of North America. I kid you not when I say the Griswald house was based on our house... and they still didn't do it right... not enough lights and they should have been colored.
Com Ed.. the electric company... used to send us a christmas card every year. At the height of his decorating my father had over 30 figurines and every tree bush, edge of the house had lights on it.
My mother would do the inside to the point of nausium. LittleJoe one year was disturbed that my mother had "Christmasified" our bathroom. Shower curtains, toiletpaper covers, toilet SEATS (not covers) figurines, soaps, mirror decals. It looked like a gay snowman threw up in our house.
Posted by: Contagion at November 28, 2005 08:31 AMWow! I am impressed. I have a lot of that stuff, but must confess that I rarely haul it all out. I bought Christmas dishes on sale after Christmas 2 years ago but haven't used them yet!
Linens & Things? Bed, Bath & Beyond? Loooove my flannel sheets, though I don't have any Christmasy ones. This may change as my toddler grows into a boy & gets into the whole thing!!
Have fun!!
Pictures??
Posted by: Marie at November 28, 2005 10:12 AMChristmas? What is that?
Posted by: That 1 Guy at November 28, 2005 10:40 AMEbay!!
Posted by: oddybobo at November 28, 2005 11:00 AM"I have something more adult in our bedroom"
*snicker* :-)
Posted by: Harvey at November 28, 2005 11:02 AMSounds awesome! :) I hope you got lucky with the sheets.....
Posted by: Richmond at November 28, 2005 11:53 AMHave you checked Linens N Things or Bed, Bath and Beyond or Sears or Penneys... online. See if you can find the type of sheets you're looking for. Might save lots of driving around headaches.
I've never been a fan of decorating... especially outside. There's something about trying to take down Christmas decorations when it's 20 below zero that kinda puts me off. (I swear that the temps in Chicago drop like a rock on Jan 1st - the day you'd normally take all that junk down) Inside, I used to do lots more than I do now... with the new house I would actually LIKE to put some stuff out - now I just have to find it!!!
Posted by: Teresa at November 28, 2005 11:58 AMHeh! You need to meet my sister. She has 15 boxes of just Christmas ornaments not to mention the other Christmas stuff. She must of gotten that from my mother who even had a Christmas toilet seat cover!
Posted by: Denny at November 28, 2005 01:18 PMAmanda- I had a baby and 2 preschoolers and I caught my husband on the roof of our house putting up lights. I came out and yelled, 'I am good for about minimum wage right now! How good is your insurance!' GRR.
I've been on-line looking for the sheets. As of now, the plan is for me to use the double sheets, tucked in well, on is twin bed. I will start looking at Target etc., as I hit them in my shopping excursions.
Denny- I must look into that Christmas toilet seat cover. I don't know about the Toilet SEAT that Contagion's Mom had, although if I find one... I'll be hard pressed to not buy it...
Posted by: Bou at November 28, 2005 10:19 PM