Pluggers by Rick McKee for December 13, 2022

at my parents’ house, there are usually two trees

The plugger can’t see the trees for the forest. I still remember some of my Christmas decorations from over 60 years ago, like the white electric candles in the windows, the Lionel train going around the tree base, and my favorite—-a lot big round green tree light. No cool led lights back then. The lights got hot! And we had a chimney with a real wood fireplace. (Yes, it got very dirty. Santa always came home covered in soot!)

My mother-in-law gets a year’s worth of exercise taking out the storage boxes, putting up her tree, layering on hundreds of ornaments, and then reversing the process. She lives for the year-end holidays.

Must get the tree out of the box today !

Never liked a tree that was so decorated you couldn’t see the tree ! ! ! !

That’s really pretty

We have a black iron tree that’s been up for a couple of years now. I just replaced the lights (one string had “burned” out).

Yah. So we had to get a second tree.

Yep… after years of collecting, saving, and receiving Christmas decor from family and friends.

It’s why we keep our Charlie Brown tree, those new fangled trees don’t leave room for your prized collection.

We call it an ornament tree.

Had to buy some after my child moved out b/c most went them.

My bride has saved every ornament the kids made. Now they have their own families and she’s giving them back. One of the DIL cried. So did my bride.

We no longer have room to put up a Christmas tree (daughter moved into our 2 bdrm apt with all her stuff and we are living cheek by jowl now. Can’t wait until I retire and we can move and buy a real house (our first!!). It will be much bigger than anything we have lived in EVER!

And not because you bought so many, but because you’ve added a few every year for many years, and a number of them were hand made at home or school.

We have 4 Christmas trees plus a beaded tree I made.

Main tree – 6 ft – in living room. It does get overcrowded with ornaments. Used to be in the front of room but since husband bought his @11# small “big screen” tv it will be in the back of the living room. Have been working on getting it decorated – problem is that we did not take into account that the front and back of the living room have a major difference. In the front there is a “front” of the tree into the room and a "front"of the tree showing on the side of the tree to the house entryway. So only half of the “good” ornaments can be seen.

Had too many bear ornaments for main tree and used the top of the big tree we were getting rid of to make a small tree for the top of the stairs with some of the bear ornaments on it. This has grown into a village of bear figurines, small toy bears, etc. with the tree in the center of the village and assorted building – church, medical center, town hall/school, stores restaurant, gazebo, carnival type booth (run by the senior bears), a residential area and two parks. Changed more or less monthly to match what should be going on – though currently stuck in Easter.

Small tree in our studio has only ornaments we have made.

Dining room done as a colonial tavern room. Small tree (incorrect for period) holds the brass ornaments we get as members of Colonial Williamsburg – some duplicates go on the main tree.

And decades ago I made a small beaded tree that I put out in the living room.

The decorating inside is about 90% of our holiday so we decorate big.

We have a small tree in our studio and split our homemade ornaments between the studio tree and the main tree.