Joanie, the was a wonderful story, one i knew nothing about.

Smiley i understand perfectly, though i think i would have loved your job. i was great at organization, acct., customer service, worked in a school for years. Noone believed i would ever quit working, even if i hit the lotto. I never understood how they could think that.

I enjoy taking everything out and despise putting everything away. What has stressed me out in the past was having antique Christmas bulbs broken. I'd wind up being so sad. This year I gave all my breakable things to my niece who LOVES Christmas decorating. I bought myself a nice selection of unbreakable bulbs. Now I don't have to be worried about the tree falling over or the cat getting overly curious. Surprisingly, I don't miss the old ornaments at all.

when children or grandchildren are involved, it's "magical" for them at this time of year....however I have NO grandchildren and children live far away so don't visit at this time of year....therefore, CHRISTMAS decorating is a total waste for hubby and I...we HAVE everything we NEED ( we're seniors ) after yrs. of marriage, so why put up a tree with no presents to go UNDER it???? I, instead, decorate for the SEASONS and for SAFETY......I decorate for Spring/ Summer, and Fall/ Winter......we live in Maine, so Winters can sometimes be harsh and come early, and of course it gets dark out earlier.......therefore, around the end of Sept. I put candles in each of our 6 living room windows across the front of the house...add a garland of greenery with white lights across my fireplace mantle, and put white strings of lights on each layer of my 3-tier fountain outside on my front lawn.....the mantle and window lights make the large room so much cozier until the Spring, and the fountain lights provide "security lighting" in the night hours...I have a wreath on the door of dark burgandy, rust, and gold colored flowers, and I then add a gold bow and battery-operated string of lights to that come Dec. 1st....I also put a string of white lights on each shrub to either side of my front door, on timers, so that further "warms up" the look and provides security.........these ALL stay on until around March, when I switch to pastel colored wreath at the door, and submersible lights when the fountain is working....since the days are then longer and it's lighter for more hours, I only use solar-powered spots aimed at my front door thru Spring & Summer and early Fall...this way I'm not changing "decorations" every few weeks for a specific Holiday, but rather "decorating" for comfort, safety, security, and our own pleasure....works for us !!

I love Christmas, it's my favorite time of the year. I start planning in October cause I get my xmas fund money from the bank in November. I love the decorating, shopping, cooking, everything. That's the only time I really like to shop.

I love decorating, but do not enjoy putting it away.

There is a reason for the season, I love Christmas magic and what it represents too, and yes, I do decorate for the "Joyous and Blessed Christmas Holiday Season" enjoy it and I begin planning before Thanksgiving, we are seniors, but I do put up the tree by myself, and decorate. It is difficult to climb the steps to grab all the many ornaments I store upstairs in a large cabinet for me due to having had knee surgery 2 years ago, but I will continue as long as it is possible to do so. I downsized the tree from a beautiful full 9' to a gorgeous 7.5' last year, it is up now ready to decorate today! Kaaren Baumgartner did suggest having a neighbor help out, and I may just have to do that in the future years, down the road! I do have a very nice guest closet I could transform into a Christmas closet on the main floor so that I still have the pleasure of opening the carefully placed ornaments and viewing them as they are removed from the boxes once again. My favorite ornaments? The wreath and our gorgeous clear colored glass ornaments I place with quality red ribbons on the chandelier. OH wait! Just realized that my closet is 9', all I have to do is slide the Christmas tree into the closet each year, assembled! <<Grinning, ear to ear>> ! My 94 year old mom still decorates her entire home, if she can do it, so can I! Merry Christmas, and Happy Holidays to all others! Enjoy the season, it is what you make it!

Nope.. Don't decorate! I may put a wreath on the mailbox just to show I'm not an atheist, but I don't get into the Holidays like most people. Dread them every year! I'm glad other people like them! I just try to muddle though!

Decorating is fun, undecorating is stressful.

Decorating is fun, undecorating is stressful.

Last year I was laid up with a bum knee and couldn't move around much to decorate. I called our neighbors to come help trim the tree. They did such a beautiful job, that we did the same thing this year, although this time it was for fun and not out of necessity! Now I am thinking it will become a new tradition!

A tree decorating party sounds like a great idea. A de-decorating party might be more of a challenge.

I enjoy the end result tremendously while at the same time find the process exhausting & stressful. It's a matter of living up to ones expectations.

Decorating can be fun for me as long as I let go of my perfectionist side. This year my daughters will be coming, so my husband and I bought a beautiful tree. I picked a quiet night and started decorating. Drank a little Baileys, played some Christmas music, lit the fireplace, and the night held no stress (even with the not so fun hanging of the lights on the tree.) Now I can enjoy the decorations for a few weeks before our company arrives.

Lynda your home looks lovely. Congratulations your kids will be impressed I'm sure.

If any parts of decorating add to your stress, that's a sure sign that you should stop doing it!!

Just indoor decorations no outdoor lights, Merry Christmas to all

When we lived near family, and in a slowly winter climate, I LOVED decorating for the season! With excited little ones at home, and friends and family dropping by, it was a much loved ritual.

Now, kids have grown up and moved on with their lives elsewhere, and we are now in perpetual summer in California. The idea of setting up the tree, and draping pine boughs everywhere, has lost its luster. It's just the two of us here, and suddenly my enjoyment of the holiday decor has waned sharply. Hubby still wants the tree, so I delegate it to him!

I LOVED it in my 20s, 30s, and 40s - now - not so much. I think that is pretty common - on my street the homes that are decked out are owned by young families or done up if the grandkids are coming this year.

I remember when i was young and single, i used to go to the mall have a hot cup of chocolate and watch others shop, it always got me in the Holiday mood. I gave up malls years ago, but still miss that.

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@ectheboss24, putting a wreath on the mail box does not mean you're not an atheist! It just means you decorated the mail box. Lots of atheists decorate for the holiday, they just don't attach any religious significance to it. If you want to show that you're not an atheist, go to church.

I guess I'm one of them, the decorating atheist that is.

I find Christmas so much less stressful since retiring! About the beginning of December I gather greens from along our forested roads to decorate my empty planting pots. Around the first week of Dec the tree and tabletop and mantle decor goes up. No fresh tree here as we like to enjoy it for the full month of Dec. We entertain a lot and love the festive atmosphere.

It really only takes a half day to put everything out and about the same for teardown...but our house is only 2200 square feet.

The main this is to enjoy whatever you want to do!

Merry Christmas to everyone!

A shot of inside...

Christmas in Kentucky 2015

I live alone, am severely disabled, a sister who lives 3,000 miles away. I am also broke. Christmas is only fun when you have family, friends and food. It is the most stressful and upsetting time of year. I try to ignore it but it's everywhere.

Alice what a unique decoration, adorable! such adorable things everyone has!

Dear Ruth, I am sorry this is such a hard time of year for you. You will find that it is what you make of it. Send hand made christmas cards to those you knew and/or know now. Change the date of your Christmas party and host a tea. Explain in your invite, you do not have much, but would love to see them and have a cup of tea in honor of the holiday. 5 will get you 10 they will bring the rest with them. You should not ignore it, that is what makes you miserable. If you can get a ride to the local mall, sit there and watch the shoppers, the decorations, etc. if you are religious oriented, reach out to those in your church, they will gladly come and cart you to services and functions. Noone wants you to be by yourself, people live and want to help you. I know you don't want to ask for the help, but people would feel awful if they found out how much you are suffering.

If you cannot handle this, come to my thread and some of the others. Do what i do, i am not able to use a camera, and I don't know what hubby did with all parts even if i did. and i hate to ask. he works full time and takes care of all of us. I too am pretty heavily disabled now. Am always hooked to a wall. So i look online and shop for cool Christmas decorations to put up. We are even making up parts to deck the halls! Soon we will start with the 12 days of Christmas. Believe me, I know, there is someone in Houzz, 24/7 365 days a year, and most of us are quite nice. My thread is Holiday Decorations Lets See Um!

I am truly thankful for everyone on Houzz, it has made a huge difference in my world, and you will find it can in yours too!

Dear Having Fun,

I have arthritis everywhere and am bedridden 95% of the time.
All of my "friends" abandoned me long ago. Trust me, even if I could get to a mall, seeing happy families together enjoying themselves is a very mixed blessing. I can't go anyway because I cannot sit. I am living on saltines and powdered milk and there are no social services in my area. I have had one visitor in the last 16 months.
Please have a joyful Christmas. Just remember that for some it is a painful and lonely time

Diane where ever you are, most of us keep up with threads, no matter how far down you are.

Ok, ruth, so you will make new friends. I have. I am over 1000 miles from home and have made new friends on the block i currently live on. as i said i am tied to a wall 100% of the time, unless I am taken off. And even though i too have arthritis, I admit that yes, i am better off than you, but you are here, and there are people where i live who cannot get online, even. So you are better off than them. write letters to military overseas, and for your christmas cheer go here every day.

https://www.houzz.com/discussions/holiday-decorations-lets-see-um-dsvw-vd~3488657

Because I put things up every night, and everyone there does. But you have to be willing to go out of yourself.

Friends, I have had more stress this year than I ever have had in my life, but somehow Christmas was just the outlet I needed. Our old house was on the Charity Christmas tour for our community, and last night I had over 300 visitors. Getting ready for the tour was stressful, but it took me out of my own head and gave me an outward focus away from the burdens that I have with the rest of my life.
And--havingfun is right--Houzz offers a great online community of people who care from a distance!

Boom! In the middle of our little worries about color and style, Ruth reminds us of the real pain, both emotional and physical, so many in our community face. My heart goes out to you and everyone facing chronic pain. My hope is that you can find the strength to reach out and embrace what help and concern there is. People do care!

How wonderful Sandi, and i am sure seeing all those people get wide eyed with wonderment over what you had done, made all the difference! It is true, somehow or other, knowing that you made someone's day a little better or brighter, realizing you can do that, gives you value, worth. reminds you maybe it is not so bad, it can be improved upon. Someone in that group probably really needed something you did. Reminded them of their grandmother or mom's house or decorations or their childhood and friends.

So ruth, if you know a way we can help you, let us know.

As an Interior Designer my entire life (47 years of practice) I find it very relaxing and stimulating to place Christmas decorations, and every year is different because I love to challenge myself with what I have. I replace things when needed, but I am never predictable, even to myself.

Oh my gosh Ruthfrogers, what you have said makes me feel so sad! I cannot imagine how hard it must be for those who are housebound, lonely and in pain. I do hope you come over to havingfuns Christmas thread. havingfun, is so much fun! Pretty much anything goes on that thread. I know havingfun has her own health issues, but she never lets it get in her way of enjoying things. She makes me laugh everyday! And she puts my brain to work all the time....I find myself lately trying to come up with words that rhyme with "apparel". And "chorus"...even in my sleep! Falalalala lalalala.
Come on Ruth, have a look see. :)

This discussion was just what I needed. I started making homemade ornaments for gifts back in September. I'm still not done, and it has become more of a chore than a pleasure at this point. I've had my dining table covered with crafting materials all this time. I pretty much skipped fall decorating because it was still so warm that I just couldn't get into it. On Black Friday I drug all of the Christmas decorations down from the attic. We downsized a few years ago, and I intended to weed through everything and only keep what I now have room for. Well, now my side of the garage is so cluttered that I have to park my car in the driveway, and the only decorating I've done is to put up the tree. There just isn't any place to put a bunch of knick knacks. Pretty much every horizontal surface in my house has a plant on it. I had to move some just to have a spot for the tree.

I think I need to go get some cheese to go with my whine. First world problems, huh. Seriously though, reading through this post helped me realize that it really is time to let go of the grandiose expectations I have for myself.

Happy holidays Houzzers!

billiesue14....if you have tons of extra decorations, do you have kids to pass them on down to??? They might like to have some of the things they remember in your home in years past. IF NO KIDS..............please consider this.........people with children may lose everything they have in a fire....consider giving an extra tree with decorations to that family for the Holidays.....no one gone thru a fire recently in your area??? Then consider donating some things to a homeless shelter for their "common room"....or to a nursing home / assisted living facility where people usually do NOT have any decorations and MISS them as they remember them from years long ago at their own homes....a simple knick-knack given to an elderly resident with perhaps a token "gift" ( like a pretty hanky, etc. ) would mean so much to them !! Use some of the larger, more expensive-type decor as a gift for a "present swap", use some as "hostess gifts", just sooooo many different ways you can clear out YOUR accumulation, and help others in the process!!! Happy Holidays!!

my mom belongs to a garden circle and the local ladies club back home she always donates things to their auctions too. how about this one, billie, instead of continuing to try to make handmade ones, give out the other ones if in good shape. try to attach a sticky with a meaning.

I have been on that treadmill before billie. I quit taking off the day or two before Christmas or Thksgvg, because i just would try to do too much. i currently have like 3 unfinished presents from 35 years ago somewhere in this house.

I love to decorate for the holidays! I tell my husband that he is lucky... he got a low maintance woman who doesn't require gift shopping. He always finds me something but I seriously don't need anything. We have no children so thru the year we buy things we want/need. I just enjoy the season of sparkling light and good cheer. Love to sit with a cup of tea in the morning and look at the sparkling tree.

I usually get some greens and put them around the house. I do enjoy that and enjoy looking at others decorations!

Nothing more wonderful then sneaking out into the living room in the middle of the night and looking at the lighted tree!

As I am getting older and the kids have their own place and live abroad, I just don't have the energy, but my husband loves it. So we have friends who come over and help put up the decorations. The house looks amazing but all I can think of is, when are we going to be able to get this stuff all put away and get the house back to normal. Guess I'm kind of a scrooge. LOL!

Decorating the tree became kind of boring because I used the same artificial tree, the same decorations, etc. every year for quite a long time. THIS YEAR, I shook things up. I replaced our old tree with a pre-lit 7 foot pencil tree. My grown children are really busy this time of year, so I "stole" the grandkids (ages 15, 18 and 20). Though, doing this could be equally fun with younger kids!

I left all my decorations in the attic and spent December making hand-made decorations with my grandkids, adding each to the tree as it was finished. We dried oranges/limes/lemons, mod podged pages from a music book onto Christmas balls, wood-burned designs onto slices of tree limbs, wrapped balls in twine, etc. Decorating the tree became a month of hot chocolate, laughter, and together time with my grandkids making memories. As busy teens, they MADE time to come over to craft with me. It was fun watching the tree "come to life" with each decoration being added as it was completed.

How lovely! I can not get into fake trees, but i saw this while i was doing shopping for my holiday thread, which i hope you get to lurk into, if you don't wish to participate. Anyways, i think i will try it. Maybe even more than one

I too might make the ornaments. twirl the lights up the bottoms?

havingfun...Cute pic with the branches in bottles! I don't like artificial trees either, but hubby and granddaughter have allergies which prevent us from having a real tree! Bummer, huh?

maybe you could put it on your porch? so you can see from kitchen window? I like it because it seems like it will be less stress on hubby, something i can do pretty much all by myself! Yeah!

Happy holidays everyone!

That's a good idea. I have a shelf out from my kitchen window and it would be a cute idea all the way through winter...maybe add some seed balls for the birds to make it double duty!

It's all about the rhythm of life here. We put up Christmas decorations after the Thanksgiving holiday (usually in the first week of December). We convert them to Mardi Gras decorations on January 6th (Epiphany) and leave them up through Ash Wednesday.

I think decorating for holidays is pure FUN.

I love decorating and the sparkling lights. Feeling we need it more now since we are all at the home front more due to the pandemic. I sit by the lighted Christmas tree and mantel as I drink my morning tea and think about how blessed I am to be in a comfortable home and feeling safe there. This year.. I decided to make my mantel non traditional with tropical items. The tree is now set up to the right of this fireplace with just the lights and garland. I need to unpack the ornaments from various friends and travels thru 40 yrs of marriage. Our Memory Tree is always a beauty.

Putting up a tree is okay but putting it away after the holiday is tedious beyond words. Some years I put a wreath on the door and call it done, especially if we are traveling for the holiday.