Jamie, I could have written the post that you did. I just didn't realize I felt that way until you put it into words. Welcome back. I have missed seeing you post. I don't post here very often, but read fairly often. I guess I am more of a taker than giver here. I feel that I am so unorganized that I need the inspiration some (a lot) of you give here. Thanks

Great post! I just realized I pretty much feel the same.
Bianchi

Jamie, you took the words right out of my mouth. I feel the exact same way!

Sheryl

Jamie, nice to hear from you again!

I know exactly what you mean, although this year I actually went a bit too far in the OTHER direction with my decorating...last year I did a huge cull and got rid of all the red/green and cutesy holiday ornaments, gift wrap, and tree decoration items. Realized I don't own a single piece of clothing, furniture or accessory in those colors so why was I decorating for my favorite holiday that way?! (No offense to red/green lovers of course :). Anyway I replaced with silver, gold and touches of white and love the look.

But when I put out my house decorations this year I first tried to stay with the spare uncluttered look I"m aiming for year round. And, it didn't work. I kept looking around thinking it just wasn't feeling very festive, until I went to KMart (thank goodness for Martha) and picked up more gold/silver bows and got things livened up. I think part of the charm of the holidays is exactly what you say Jamie, having all the 'stuff' out and festooning the house.

Even the ancillary clutter isn't necessarily a bad thing. I've got a couple of storage boxes with all my wrap and trim tucked into the corner of the florida room but every night I haul 'em out and another set of boxes, bags and packages emerges all nicely wrapped and bowed (in silver, gold and white of course). So it is clutter I suppose. But it's clutter that will hopefully make my family and friends happy, and clutter that reflects the joy of the season.

Great post, Jamie!

Ann

But why does it all go away on the 26th?

A tradition carried over from childhood, we don't put up our tree until the weekend before Christmas Eve. And it all stays up until New Year's Day, or Jan 2 if I can stand it.

The quiet celebrations of the season continue throughout the week between Christmas and New Years. My kids (and usually my husband) are off. We gather with close friends during this week. In fact, my kids have school through the 23rd, so I think it would disappoint them to be home all week in a non-Christmas sterile environment.

I know the retail world doesn't help with drastic sales beginning the 26th (and promoting them the days before. I hate hearing about after-Christmas sales when Christmas has not even come yet!) And it would be nice if the radio continued playing holiday music until the New Year.

It seems that the only place to find Christmas after the 25th is at church, where the festive decorations and music last a few weeks.

And maybe on soap-operas (LOL)

It just seems like there is a long build-up (beginning before Halloween) to a culmination of one day, when it should last through the week. JMHO.

Sorry to go off-topic and I truly mean no offense (to each their own.)

And I, too, love the feeling come January of having all the Christmas clutter put away. Except for our Nativity which stays up through January 6th

I have been able to simplify decorating quite a bit, simply because I have a lot of red throughout the year in our house, so it doesn't need as much to look "Christmasy", but I know once the trees, nativity, santas, etc. make themselves at home, it really shrinks the place! I love January too . . . my home suddenly seems much bigger and lighter!!

By the way, it is good to "see" you again!

Brenda

It's nice to "see" all of you too. :-)

Maura, most people around here, including my parents, also leave thier decorations up until New Year's. My MIL sometimes doesn't put hers away until February! So I think you're definately in the majority on that one...I don't think I know anyone else who puts christmas away right after the holiday. :-)

I have a "thing" about starting right away on January 1st with the house all clean and tidy and ready for "winter", it's sort of an "out with the old" type of thing for me. I can't feel like the new year has started until the old year has been "put to bed" properly. I actually have the day off on the 26th, so I'll do most of my "undecorating" then, but I'll be working the rest of the week, as will my husband, so I'll spend the evenings gradually getting my cleaning done, and that Saturday finishing up and getting ready to welcome the new year in with friends. I like to wake up on the 1st to my clean, organized house...it just feels like a good way to start the new year for me. I spend time with both my parents and in-laws on New Year's Day, and it just seems "odd" to still have the christmas stuff up and out then. Not to mention I won't have time then to work on *my* house, as we're expected at the other places. I am thankful that I have the day after New Year's off as well...it's nice when these holidays fall over the weekend, as far as work schedules go.

For me, I start the christmas season the first week of December, and we're celebrating with friends and family the week *before*, so the week after just doesn't seem necessary for me. That's when I'm putting the old year to bed, and gently waking the new year up.

But like I said - I'm the only person I know who does it this way...around here, stores still have thier decorations up that next week, and everyone still turns thier lights on and celebrates, so you're certainly in the majority with your views, and there's nothing wrong with that at all. :-)

Well -- in our family -- there's an old Scots tradition that its bad luck to have the decorations up past Jan. 6th -- Twelfth Night.

And I feel the same way -- way TOO much stuff at first -- and then I really miss all the lights after I put it away!!! LOL!!!

I once had these very nice neighbors. They put up the tree Christmas Eve, the next morning were the presents, then she took it down plus all the decorations. When you came to her house in the afternoon on Christmas, it looked like it always did, no Christmas, very neat, and everything put away, inl. toys and other presents.
I'm just not that fast, it must be kinda hectic.
Bianchi

I'm finding that after the 25th, Christmas is truly over and I am very ready to take everything down. It's like all of a sudden I can't handle the clutter anymore! I don't have it all packed away by the 26th, but it's usually mostly gone by the 1st. January is my decluttering month - not just holiday, but everything no longer loved. I also love to work on the interior of the house during this time, and maybe take a class.

Sheryl

Like Sheryl and Jamie, my decorations are down by January 1. And Jamie, we'll be the minority of two; I feel EXACTLY the way you do about starting the New Year with the house clean and tidy and un-decorated :). In our case though, one of our family traditions is to get our tree on the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Not Saturday, not Monday after, but that Sunday and always the same size from the same place. So by Christmas day it's been up along with all the decorations for usually nearly a month. It doesn't feel at all like shortening the season just before New Year's.

But I do love that tree sparkling in the living room. Every night those are the last lights I turn off.

Ann

I try to take my tree down on New Year's Day. I say try because if New Year's falls in the middle of the week I sometimes don't get it done because of working on other things. In that case, I work on it in the evenings. The tree is the last thing to come down. I ususally start taking some of the other things down between Christmas & New Year's.

I always hated how empty the house felt after taking down the decorations. Kind of like "now what."

My mom (aged 88) said when she was a kid, Santa brought everything. The tree and the presents just appeared for Christmas morning. Of course, as poor as they were, it probably didn't take long to put the presents out. I would sure hate to try and get that done now while the kids are sleeping.

Gloria

In theory, our tree is up from the day after Thanksgiving (a work holiday) until New Years Day (another work holiday). Since I'm not home much, it takes a whole month for the extra clutter to start to bother me. LOL

This year... we're several weeks behind!