Every year we put up our eclectic decorations on our Christmas tree. And every year they seem to get uglier and uglier.
It started with our wedding, when my mother presented me with a box of every Christmas decoration I had ever made as a child. Let's just say that pipe cleaners were my best friend.
Then, our first Christmas together, my mother-in-law presented me with a box of every decoration my husband had ever made as a child. Canvas cross stitch was featured prominently.
Over the years we have added things the children made, from dough figurines to pie plates with pictures and painted shapes.
And beyond a doubt, they are all hideous.
Many of them, of course, have sentimental value. But not all. And then you add to the tree the ugly decorations we have been given, or which I seem to have bought in a temporary lapse of any sort of colour coordination, and our tree is pretty awful.
This Saturday my girls and I decided to decorate, and much hilarity ensued as we examined the different elements on that tree. Some decorations are actually quite beautiful, but many are just plain terrible. And then it occurred to me: perhaps it is a time to have a weeding out.
Certainly we'll keep the important ones, which speak to a moment in our lives together, frozen in time (even if they are hideous!). But I do not think we need six examples of each type of hideousness. And since the girls are no longer children (Katie turned 13 this year), and they are both becoming quite decoration savvy, they would like to actually have a tree that looks, well, at least presentable.
So we have decided to host a Survivor Christmas Tree challenge this year. Instead of only using a typical advent calendar, we shall also celebrate the days ticking away until Christmas by voting a hideous decoration off of the tree. That's 25 decorations that can go! Some nights, one of the four of us will nominate 2 items, and the other three will vote, guaranteeing that one will go. Other nights I will let you, my loyal readers, chuck a decoration. I'll put up two pictures, and you can vote which one leaves! But there are rules: if an item survives a vote, it cannot be renominated until next week. That way if you really hate something, you know it better go now!
And then next Christmas, we'll still have the important ones, but we'll have more room to actually create a pretty tree by buying pretty things.
Tomorrow is officially the day we start, but since tomorrow is Wifey Wednesday, and I have something important I want to talk about re: marriage, I'm going to post the first vote now.
So here are our first two candidates:
First we have a styrofoam star that Katie spray painted gold in Sunday School one year, and added decorations to. It also, at some point, lost one of the points of its star, but it has been going on the tree every year anyway. Now please be assured that a few of the important things Katie made as a child are on the reserved list, so if this gets chucked, it is not like we lose everything she made.
Second up is what I believe is supposed to be a bow. I think I made this one when I was a kid. We took fabric, wrapped it together, and then used a pipe cleaner to tie it.
So it's up to you: which one has to go? You have until tomorrow to vote! And I do need your vote!
My son and I both agreed... the star is cute, despite the broken bit... the bow is not!! So we cast our ballot for the bow... just hope this vote isn't TIED... get the pun??? Fun idea and we will look forward to the next selection of items!
I was thinking about making some decorations with the kids this year. I think your post has convinced me to use our time for other things! Who really wants to sift through it all 10-20 years from now? We have enough of that sort of stuff to deal with :)
Anonymous--There is a point to that! But I do want to emphasize that there are about 10 decorations that we are absolutely keeping, hideous or not. They have great sentimental value. I just don't think you have to keep 50 versions of sentimental value. But part of that sentimental value was the fun making them, and the memories. So if you can find something that's fun to make and that doesn't look hideous, I'd still say, go for it! Then you can have fun weeding when the kids are teens!
Anonymous, thank you for the vote of confidence, but the bow is now gone, as that was the vote!
We get to vote on our own tomorrow, but I'll post pictures on my Facebook page of the candidates. And next week I'll let you all vote on another round!
About Me: I'm a Christian author of a bunch of books, and a frequent speaker to women's groups and marriage conferences. Best of all, I love homeschooling my daughters, Rebecca and Katie. And I love to knit. Preferably simultaneously.
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Hello mommy's readers,
If you would all vote for the broken star it would be much appreciated. It's worse in real life. Haha!
Katie won't mind. ;) She's hoping it goes, too.
Becca Danielle