This morning, Cammie's teacher was running a few minutes late. Another mom and I were waiting with the kids and of course, I initiated small talk. (I can and will talk to anyone...something that baffles my husband. He's more of the "small talk is a waste of breath and energy why would I strike up a conversation with someone I don't know speak to strangers only when necessary" sort).
Where was I? Small talk, yes...so we began talking about Christmas Trees. I said that I was in the market for a fake tree for the bonus room. She said that her family has always put up a fake tree. I have always had a real tree. My mom always bought a real tree (a tiny scraggly real tree, but real nonetheless). Her parents put up a fake one. Hmmm. Interesting.
This led to the compromises we made with our husbands when merging our Christmas traditions.
Mark thought that a fake tree with mismatched ornaments and colored lights were required. (EEEK).
He thought that my "matchy-matchy" ornaments were too frou-frou, the white lights were too boring and that going out in the cold/haggling over the price/tying to the top of the vehicle/wrestling down from the top of the vehicle/sawing off the bottom of the trunk when it was invariably too tall/getting slathered with sap and looking like he'd been in a cat fight due to all of the pine needle scratches... was entirely too much effort to put into a Christmas tree.
So, we compromised. He agreed to a real tree and white lights...I gave into mismatched ornaments. (Honestly, I think I came out with the better end of the deal).
The first year, I had serious difficulty buying ornaments. My OCD driven brain could not comprehend it. I went to the store several times to buy ornaments and left empty handed. Until, a friend of mine (who understood my compulsion for ornaments that "made sense") suggested that each member of our family get a different kind of ornament. Ah ha. A theme for each person, genius. This gave my OCD brain not one theme, but seven. Seriously, could it get any better?
Mark has Santa ornaments, I have Nutcrackers, Forrest gets Gingerbread people, Hannah has Angel ornaments, Sophie has Snowmen, Chloe gets the Reindeer and Cammie, Bears.
We have co-existed in Christmas Tree merriment ever since. Mostly. Although I have conquered my ornament-buying-block, I still get googly eyed over the sumptuous matchy-matchy trees at 'Tis The Season, and I still feel a sense of calm when wandering through the themed ornament sections of Target.
This year, my ever indulgent husband agreed to let me put up a second tree in the bonus room. A MATCHY-MATCHY tree. Yes, I know, he is too good to me.
I have poured over magazines, catalogues and websites, looking for inspiration. I don't think that there is a Christmas tree aisle within a 20 mile radius that I haven't walked down. Finally I fell in love with a collection at Target. Chocolate, bronze, burnished gold = elegant. Sigh. I bought a tub of each color and the copper sprays to match.
All of the ornaments that I bought were solid. Hmmm. Need some pattern, some texture. A trip to Hobby Lobby should solve the problem.
Many an ornament was placed into the buggy. I spent 20 minutes digging through bins of "spray picks" to find the 15 needed to tuck into the branches. After 2 and a half hours of amassing the "perfect" ornaments, sprays and tree topper, my cart was full. And then, I put it all back. Yes, I did. Because, I just wasn't "feeling" it.
You see, the tree is going in our bonus room. Which, don't get me wrong, is a nice bonus room. But, trying to pull off a tree of the type I was envisioning would be a bit like putting on a ballgown and then dining at Shoney's. I mean, it's not the formal living room after all... it's the room where the kids play XBox and restaurant, where puzzles are assembled and the girls take turns being "the teacher".
Feeling a bit let down, berating myself for all of the time I had wasted, thinking about how this whole OCD thing can be a pain in the you know what, an inch from deciding that this second tree was not such a great idea, heading towards the checkout with my two nutcrackers and three gingerbread people, I found it. The PERFECT theme for the bonus room tree. I refilled my cart... in 15 minutes. Isn't it amazing what happens when genuine inspiration hits.
I am so excited to get this tree UP!
Oh, what is theme you ask? Well, you'll have to wait until it's up.
2 comments:
Ha! This is so funny...I put up a little fiber optic tree to tide me over until next week when we put up the big tree. (okay...6 ft really IS big for our apartment =) Well, of course Reagan had to help put on the ornaments. Well he has no inkling of my idea of how ornaments should be perfectly spaced and not too low. So, he hangs two cute little snowmen ornaments on the bottom branch...together. YIKES... Then I realized...I am a mom of a three year old. Why am I freaking over something so trivial. After all, we are trying to instill in him the true meaning of Christmas. I, too, had to push down the urge to be particular. (No need anyhow, what with the toys around the house, the changed clothes all over his floor, and the empty Danimals container on the coffee table.) Ha...I have come to the conclusion that a lived-in house is much more fun than a show house anyways. Can't wait to see pics of your tree!
Love~Dessa
I have never had a matchy matchy tree before or even a real one. But I want both someday!! Maybe at the same time even. I ooh and ahh those trees too and envy the ones set up in lobbies with all their glory. We have the standard 15 years of marriage tree and all of its many ornaments that have been given to us or that I have bought. That's the one downstairs. The one upstairs in the bonus room is the kids tree to do with as they wish. They proudly display their handmade ornaments, popsicle stick creations, paper chains, broken ornaments, whatever that they want too. And they do all the decorating themselves. So what if it does not meet the matchy matchy criteria that I love. In a way, it is more beautiful than any tree that I have ever seen because of the little hands that made it.
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