Preparing for the Holidays #OpenBook Blog Hop

I’m not the kind of person who decorates for every holiday. Not New Years, not the 4th of July, not Halloween, not Thanksgiving. Christmas is my one exception,

So getting ready for the holidays is fairly laid back. Thanksgiving is just a big meal, timing dependent upon work schedules. At least, that’s the way it’s been for the past ten years. This year will be different because my daughter and her family will be joining us. And I don’t have any idea what my son-in-law’s favorite food is! So I’ll probably cook extra dishes to improve the odds.  Maybe both turkey and ham instead of only one type of meat.

Now Christmas is a different story. I actually decorate for Christmas. I have boxes and boxes of Christmas “stuff.” Now, I don’t go overboard and decorate every inch of every surface. In fact, this year, with a little one around, I’ll need to cut back on the knickknacks.

But decorating means cleaning first. Not spring cleaning level of cleanliness, but not the typical quick dust and vacuuming either. Since I usually have a long weekend after Thanksgiving, I have the time and energy to tackle the job.

The decorations come out in bits and pieces. Putting them out requires finding storage spots for all the “daily” knickknacks.  Never once have I managed to get all the decorations up in one day. I can’t remember the last time I even tried!

Usually my collections of wreaths goes up first. One on the front door of course, then others throughout the interior of the house. ( I’ve got six or seven. And I might break down and buy a fresh pine wreath too.) Then my angels get moved from my writing corner to the upstairs. I usually add one a year to the collection.

Of course, the central focus is the tree itself. That alone will take me several days to get up and decorated. I have more ornaments than tree, so it’s always a debate as to which ones to use. I suspect my older, plastic ornaments will make a reappearance this year, strategically placed on the bottom branches.

Somewhere along the way, I’ll find a home for all the other holiday frills I’ve accumulated over the years. (I still have the little drummer boy candle holder my mother gave to us our first married Christmas!)  A few might even creep into my bedroom. I’ve discovered a forgotten decoration in some odd place as late as February, long after everything else has been long put away.

Putting things away is a much faster process. I can usually get that done in less than a week. The house always feels bare for a while, until all the normal things come back out of storage.

So that sums up my standard preparation for the holidays. And now, before I start thinking about what will go where this year, I’m going to hop over and see what everyone else does to get ready.

November 13, 2017 – As the holidays begin rolling in, what do you do to prepare your house, yourself and your family for the hectic days ahead?
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