Saturday, November 17, 2012

Not Before Thanksgiving


I went to Michael's yesterday to gather a couple of things I needed (yes, I don't have everything in my stash of stuff) and everywhere I looked Christmas had arrived.  I have seen houses already lit-up for Christmas and Christmas songs can be heard everywhere you go.  I love Christmas, but I feel strongly that Christmas celebrations and decorations should not begin until after we have celebrated Thanksgiving Day.  It used to be that way...Macy's would have their parade and that would be the official kick-off to the Holiday Season.  What happened?  I know it was the retail industry that kept pushing and pushing to lengthen their season of selling, but I can still dream, can't I?  I am one that refuses to place one Christmas item out until after Thanksgiving.  For many years, Christmas trees were not even decorated until Christmas eve....Santa would bring the decorated tree.  That was the tradition that my Mother grew up with.  When I was young, 2 weeks prior to Christmas, the tree would be decorated and before New Year's Day it was taken down.  Traditions change as time passes, but one never changes for me....no Christmas before Thanksgiving.  I am little easier going when it comes to taking the decorations down after Christmas....when my sweetie was home we used to pack them away together around New Year's Day, to begin the New Year with the house back to normal...but now that I am alone, I tend to drag my feet a little and probably leave them up a little longer than I should.

How about you?  Do you start decorating early or are you more of a traditionalist and begin after Thanksgiving?

"I wish we could put some of the Christmas spirit in jars and open up a jar of it every month of the year."  ~  Harlan Miller

Until next time....



20 comments:

  1. Up until the past few years, we used to wait until after Thanksgiving dinner was over. Nowadays, we don't have that luxury so everything has to be up before Thanksgiving. Otherwise, family that comes here for Thanksgiving and not Christmas will be angry with us because they didn't get to see our decorations, and most especially our tree. They get pretty PO-ed if they don't see it.

    The yard decorations don't go up until after Thanksgiving though.

    Kristin

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  2. i totally get your point. please get that. but i love how they are totally contacted ... i remember memories from my childhood & it felt like once i got to thanksgiving i knew family would all be together & share such great moments. i'm almost all ready at my house. i feel it is a way for me to get in the mood for the Christmas season & holiday. we are so rushed with things ... i like to ease into it... as a kid things seem so slow ... now that i am an adult they just seem to rush by.... my mom never was in a hurry but i was the one who decorated & got the tree ready at the homestead & now that i am married i love doing my one thing ... mom is always shocked that i'm all ready & she has not even started. it makes me happy. to each his own ... right??! enjoy your traditions ... love it!! all is good!! ( :

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  3. oops .. i meant connected ... poohey ... thanksgiving & christmas. ha. ha!! ( :

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  4. 1st of all, your pic is so pretty!

    2nd - I'm with you on strictly after Thanksgiving! My mom would put the tree up 2 weeks before Christmas & take it down somewhere close to New Years Day... I like to enjoy the lights & pretty ornaments a lil longer than that, but never before Thanksgiving... I put mine up the week after Thanksgiving & take it down the weekend after Christmas... I try not to turn the lights on every night, though, because of the added expense of electric & it's always so much higher in the winter, anyway. =)

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  5. i am not an early christmas person at all. i am a christmas minimalist as it is. :)

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  6. Oh, I am so with you. I have a strict "one holiday at a time" policy. I did go out and purchase a new tree for our new house this week to take my mind off you-know-what, but it will not go up until Dec 1st. I did learn of a Louisiana tradition that I was unaware of: take all the Christmas decorations off the tree after Christmas and decorate it for Mardi Gras! I was wondering why Hobby Lobby had all these green, purple and gold decorations, masks, etc. So I guess I will try that, but normally I can't wait to get my house back to normal as soon as Christas is over.

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  7. It makes me sad that we can't fully enjoy fall and thanksgiving before Christmas literally hits us in the face.

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  8. The funny thing is that my 13 year old son insists on no Christmas before Thanksgiving. I'm not sure it's because he's such a purist--I think the hype ahead of Christmas makes the waiting just TOO long. Nope, no Christmas yet. Unfortunately, this year I am having Thanksgiving here, and I scarcely have gotten anything fall out. Gonna need to do a really quick Thanksgiving decorate here, only to put it right back away.

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  9. I follow the same tradition of no Christmas until after Thanksgiving and it is down New Years Eve or New Years Day. How it is here and will be as long as I have any say in it.

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  10. When I was single I always decorated on Thanksgiving day along with a bottle of wine...it gave me something to do. Since being married I always began decorating the day after Thanksgiving. Now that our daughter is almost 18 I don't decorate as much as I used to you...just a few lights and a smaller tree..which is nice because I am able to relax more and enjoy the holiday season in a less rushed manner.

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  11. Love that photo! I'm an after Thanksgiving sort of gal! :)

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  12. Totally a "begin decorating for Christmas AFTER Thanksgiving" and a "take down the Christmas decor New Year's Day" kinda gal.

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  13. So You could solve the problem... if you adopted the Canadian Thanksgiving, Grin....which we celebrate the first weekend in October... as that corresponds with our actual growing season... harvest is mostly over by October... November is the dreary month with some snow and cold but mostly unstable beginning winter weather! We draw the line for Christmas sales until after Halloween.... while some of us resist until after Remembrance Day . There has been some encroachment this year but surprisingly the popular opinion has shut down the christmas carols ad nausium until DEC 1 ... A good day I think to start to think about the Holiday craziness!!!! But Happy Thanksgiving to all of you in the next week... You have more to shoot than we do because we are already in the snow dead plants.... and grey skies... such fun living up north!!! grin.... I have a daughter sho lives even furhter north than I so I can feel a little smug even now.....But she does get Northern lights more than I do.... sigh.... Isn't it all a trade off! Cheers
    Christine( Whimc)

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  14. We are always out of town for Thanksgiving so we would decorate right before we left so that when we got home after Thanksgiving the house was all decorated for Christmas. This year I ran out of time. It seems like Thanksgiving is early this year. So I will be decorating when we get back.. But I do love to Decorating for Christmas. My favorite time of the year.


    Hugs~

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  15. In the Netherlands only a few people celebrate Thanksgiving, so it's not a big issue here. When my childeren were little, I started decorating on the 9th of december because we celebrated "Sinterklaas". On his birthday (6 dec) childeren are getting presents in their shoes. Now that they are all grown up, I start my Christmas decorating on the first of december and my home stays that way till the 7th of January, the day before there is the celebration of "the three kings".

    But... I've already started taking pictures of Christmas decoratations which I edited with the lovely Winter Wonderland digtal kit from Jessica Sparque, to make a Christmas album.

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  16. I definitely don't do any decorating before Thanksgiving for Christmas. The ONLY thing that MIGHT happen is if we have a warm streak, Dream Boy puts the lights on the outside of the house, but they don't get lit up until after Thanksgiving.
    I'm with you on this one!

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  17. We don't put up Christmas here, until after Thanksgiving. And, it stays up until the day...or so, these days...after New Years.

    It does seem to show up in the retail world earlier and earlier each year. Sad. But, I guess I can understand their need to make some money.

    I try to buy from the small shops in our town. They certainly need the income.

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  18. We usually put up our tree on Thanksgiving weekend and take it down sometime after the new year (whenever I get around to it!)

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  19. I wait for decorating till after Thanksgiving dinner. We usually put up the lights outside. It gives the guys something to do and that is when we have the extra help. Not to mention beating the frigid temps and snow. It's hard to get those fingers working when it is so cold outside and you have thick gloves on. By the next weekend I have most of the inside decorating done and the weekend following Thanksgiving is when we do the tree. Christmas music is a different story. My son can be heard humming Christmas tunes in the middle of summer.

    @3Beeze Homestead

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  20. No, no. I never, ever pull out one bit of Christmas before the day after Thanksgiving. My grandmother would be proud. :)

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