Great story Judi ! I gave up the battle of the live tree several years ago so now I just walk into the attic, unzip the tree bag and bring it down to the sitting room. The older I get the more I love that fake tree!!

More inspiration.....and P.S.... I drug that tree down from the attic today and started decorating!

I want to share the stockings I found many years ago. They would be nice for you to make if you're crafty. I think they are quite unique.
Left to right.
Man's dress pant and shoe - Hubby
Roller Skate - Son
High Heel Shoe - Me
Ballerina Shoe - Daughter
Crochet Lace Stocking with adornments - Niece

You guys haven't even mentioned the upside downchristmas tree trend... On Houzz????? http://oakland-avenue.blogspot.ch/2010/12/upsidedown-christmas-tree.html

The upside down tree can sure help in finding a smaller space for it. Good idea!

I am not sure DH is going to appreciate me drilling holes in the ceiling to hang it though!

when I was a teen we would take a coat hanger and tie wrapped hard candy with florists wire. We would shape the coat hanger to a circle first and when gifting tie kids colourful scissors to it. You would pick the hard candy based on having wrapping in Christmas colours.

The ideas for the "shoe stockings" that @LB had and the idea about the old flannel shirts that @1807henry had is a custom stocking business in the making!!! Are you tempted Genevieve?

Keitha, I am making those pancakes for Christmas morning!

@ASV, I think the upside down Christmas tree would drive me crazy if I had to look at it every day for a whole month! Oh well, I do work for a psychiatrist so I could get free counseling ....LOL !!!

Me too pcmom, even my teenagers would love them!!

i'm stoked about decorating! ordered 35 new strings of gold and amber and red lights to blend-in with existing prelit trees. i wish to brighten and enrichen the color this year. they (the lights) arrive Monday. and i do believe i'll start decorating the day after Thanksgiving!

A good friend of mine who lives in an old Victorian home has been collecting Waterford ornaments for many years. She has this enormous tree LOADED with clear lights and those beautiful ornaments and its just a sight to behold !

A good dip recipe to try out during the holidays:

BEER CHEESE DIP
2 cups grated sharp cheddar cheese
2 8oz. Packages cream cheese softened
1 pkg. Hidden Valley Ranch Dip mix
1/2-3/4 of a bottled beer.
Mix first 3 ingredients and then slowly add the beer until you get a nice creamy consistency and refrigerate overnight to let favors blend together. Serve with pretzels or veggies.

Question? Where does the star or the angel go on the upside down tree?

That's a good question @LB. it just doesn't seem right to put them at the bottom of the tree! Maybe Margo's leg lamp would work?????

I suppose hanging upside down at the bottom. Now is the time to invent the Scottish kilt wearing angel.

I think that those inflatable yard decorations are the most tackiest things ...and they say 'no creativity'....Am I the only one????

Our neighbours have one @escolat; it's not so bad. What is really bad, is the house that has about 20 of them on their huge front lawn! Now that's tacky!

I'm with you @escolat... I hate those inflatables too but I'll have to say... Kids love them !

I am another who dislikes those inflatables, cheesy!!

i like them especially if they are only a small part of a hugely over-the-top craaazzy yard.

they enhance gaudy by filling up the dark spaces.

They make fun paintball targets.

Nice to go for a walk with the kids to look at the lights. Here we get mossies that time of year so first put on repellant.

JUST SAYIN !!!

IM SCARED!!!!!!!!

Inflatable overload is HAZARDOUS to your health !!!!!!!

oh my goodness!! i don't think i've ever seen anything quite like those....
think i like a bit more lights and a little less puffy blowup thingies.

ha ha ha ha.....they look pretty absurd in dead-mode don't they!!

On a more creative note!

Maybe inflatables should move to Halloween?

How about a little duck decoy Christmas tree ?

Here is an inflatible hunter to go with those decoys mforr!!!!

LOL Keitha , also hate those piles of inflatables, complain to your council re visual pollution.

TREEmendous!!!

Cruel joke!!!

More Christmas stuff.....

We already have three trees up and were putting another up tomorrow. We loose a wk with Thanksgiving being so late this year! Have fun, decorate now and enjoy the holidays!!!

I have already put my tree up as well since we will not be having our Thanksgiving gathering at our house this year. I'm hoping that it will give me a little "Jump Start" !

In Canada we have Thanksgiving on the second Monday of October, before Hallowe'en...kinda like it that way...you get a bit of time to build up your turkey appetite again! Will put up tree around December 10th!

I wish that Halloween and Thanksgiving were switched here in the US!

Keitha, that cruel joke above sort of happened to a friend of ours. No, he didn't fall off, thank God. What happened to him was the result of his decision to put up Christmas lights while his wife and daughters were out shopping. Ladder fell down and he was stuck on the roof for 45 minutes!

Moral: At least have your cell phone with you!

Yikes!... I hope he wasn't stuck on the roof somewhere up North where you could become a human icicle in a matter of minutes.

Got chilled, but no danger of freezing!

I hope he had a Krispy Kreme donut and hot chocolate when he got down!

Think it was more a lecture from his wife!

I love that elfs legs on top of the tree. Just looks funny. Might want to post this pic on Fun Houzz also

"It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas"....

Our pink Christmas tree :))