Chatter has put a Christmas wreath on her vehicle every December for about 10 years.
She and Chitter were in college driving my old 4-Runner the first year she asked her daddy to help her attach the circle of green to the grill of the car. After she purchased her first car she continued the tradition and has kept it up since she’s married and left home. The only change is she gets Austin to help her instead of her daddy.
I never heard tell of anyone putting a Christmas wreath on their vehicle until I met The Deer Hunter.
The first Christmas we were married we were still living with Pap and Granny while we planned and saved for our house.
One day he asked me to come outside and see something. The something was a wreath with a red bow on the front of his old brown truck (the one I tried to sell when we were courting).
Even though I thought it was sort of silly it surely did make me smile and Granny just loved it. I don’t recall if it was her or me but one of us took a picture of it.
All the years Chatter has decorated her car I’ve never thought to ask her why she decided to start the tradition until yesterday. I was surprised when she said it was because she’d seen that old picture of the brown truck at Granny and Pap’s and wanted to be like her daddy.
Last night’s video: Planting Blueberries at Christmas & Matt Says I Don’t Need a Sled!
Tipper
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Living in Georgia all my life, i haven’t had the pleasure of sledding. I would try it if the conditions were just right, even if at 81, I might end up in the ER as Matt said! I love your enthusiasm about it!
I see wreaths, antlers and other Christmas decorations on vehicles and I think it is so fun!
So sweet ! So sweet ! So sweet ! The story & the comments ! Love you all !!!
Glory to God !!!
Last night, my husband and I went out to eat after I got off work. It was his day off but I had to work.We went to town at a Mexican place and here came a car with a lit up tree on top and lights down the side with a wreath to. I hadn’t seen a tree before like that.
Way late today. Been doing yard work and Christmas secrets. I think Randy’s trip to Oklahoma would make a great story. I also think BP&Aers would welcome one another most any time and any place. I have often wondered where everybody is, like say to county level. Some are up here in north Georgia. Others are up in northeast TN where we like to visit. Others are probably near where our son is in NY or our daughter is in OKC. Not thinking of looking anybody up, just curious how Tipper’s fans are distributed around places I go.
I live in Stillwater Oklahoma which is an hour from OKC. I think it’s interesting knowing where people are from too.
Ron I am in central Oklahoma…my growing up years very much resembles Tipper’s and granny’s–well pretty much everything to do with poor way of living, being frugal, figuring out how to repair something or create a tool for the job at hand because we could not just run out and buy what was needed. The food I grew up on was all the things Tipper and Mat cook—we fished, hunted, foraged, and gardened for our food (there was nine of us including mom and dad). We did not have indoor plumbing until I was in the sixth grade. Life meant hard work but my siblings and I are better people for the type of childhood we had.
Randy, Please continue to let us know how you are. There’s a bunch of folks on here that care about you and love you. How can we pray for you “INTENTIONALLY and INTELIGENTLY” if we don’t know what you’re dealing with every day? Even on days when I don’t have time to read every comment I still look for and read your comments. If I were near you I’d give you a few hugs. I might not kiss you like Donna offered, but I would surely give you a brotherly hug or two.
Jackie, my first girlfriend was named Jackie and she wouldn’t kiss me either! We were 12 years old and in the 6 grade.
I appreciate your prayers and concern for me. I will make it, but now my life without my wife has been completely broken. Please don’t worry about me.
Out an about today, I saw a couple vehicles with the spare tire on back decorated. It was a nice view. Never thought of decorating my car, but it was like the owner was saying Merry Christmas.
Merry Christmas to all.
Traditions, especially generational and mult-generational traditions, are precious. It’s a witness to how tight we hold our loved ones in our hearts. And it’s REALLY nice to see folks…well…I’m just going to go ahead and say it… WOMEN dressed up with decorations whether it be a pin and/or necklace and/or earrings and/or whatever! Of course it’s nice to see couples and families dressed up. The guys may look handsome, but the girls are pretty. Merry Christmas!
One year when our daughter was a young teenager we planned to spend Christmas with my family in TN. My wife and I discussed the tree and decorations and decided not to decorate due to being away and our tree had deteriorated through the years and we planned to buy a new one during the after Christmas sales. Our daughter complained and my wife told her that I didn’t want to do all the work to decorate and not be home to enjoy it. She still whined and fussed so I bought a string of battery powered lights and decorated the interior of our van. As we turned out of the drive she commented that every house around us had pretty lights but ours. I flipped the switch. Her reaction was, “OH, Dad, That’s embarrassing. Turn it off before someone sees us. I didn’t and she sat very low in her seat for several miles so no one would see her.
That’s so sweet and it’s so special that Chatter is doing something her dad started. Maybe down the road when little Woodrow starts driving, he’ll do the same 🙂
I think the Christmas wreath on the front of the car is beautiful! When I was young women wore a small Christmas corsage on their coats, I thought it was also beautiful. Unfortunately, that is something you haven’t seen for years. A couple years ago, I got a friend of mine to make me a small corsage and I enjoy wearing it every Christmas!
Randy your post touched my heart yesterday, like so many of the BP&A family, so…when you’re finished in Oklahoma, head up to Alberta, Canada for another hug! Just make sure you wear your woolies as it’s -16 Celsius (3.2 F) this morning!
Linda, when it’s that cold, I call a big hug an Armstrong heater! I dearly enjoy Armstrong heaters! They get an old man’s heart to pumping!
What a sweet reason to decorate a vehicle . We had a quick snow here in Athens, TN yesterday morning. It didn’t last long, but it sure was beautiful while it was here.
“She wanted to be like her Daddy”, I love that.
Randy, I think you could stop lots of places along the way and collect a lot on your trip! Let me know when you head west! Don’t feel bad about expressing your feelings. You are among friends/family and probably all of us have had those feelings and understand. I hope you can find a way to enjoy at least some of the holiday season.
I, too, see wreaths, “store-bought” antlers and tinsel with lights woven around roof racks on vehicles. It makes me smile but I also agree that it’s great to see a child carry on traditions of their parents. I agree with Randy, that shows the importance of the example parents set for their children.
I’ve seen a few vehicles with wreaths or some other holiday decorations on their grill over the years. I think it’s a nice idea. That was sweet to hear Corie did it to be like her daddy.
That was a wonderful reason to want a wreath on her car! ❣️
such a sweet story!
The cool looking Christmas wreath could lead to a less than cool engine. The radiator is right behind it. I wouldn’t recommend driving for long distances or idling for very long like that. I think I would put it on the back where the people behind me would get to see it better and the radiator could breathe easier.
People here put fake plastic reindeer antlers on either side of their doors and a big red round puff of some type in the middle of their car front. I absolutely think it looks ridiculous and wasteful. Now the wreath in the car front looks very nice indeed! Rock the look Mrs. Chatter cause it’s COOL and we all know it’s cool!!! YOU are cool and your trend setting DADDY O is cool too!!! Btw it’s dang cold in Bluefield, WV this morning and the ground is frozen beneath me… I’m getting my bedroom rebuilt after Helene so I was most thankful for warm drywall and insulation last night and this morning!!!! Jesus is always right on time but he’s never early either… Amen and May the Lord bless and keep those still without a home in a tent in western NC and TN! Please don’t forget DAMASCUS, VA which flooded and even here in WV were great damage from the storm Helene also wreaked havoc…we will climb out of it is slow… keep the chin up y’all!
Good morning Tipper!!Please continue to always be yourself and keep up those traditions!My family usually put the reindeer antlers and Rudolph’s red nose on our car, but this year I have been really down about my daughter and her situation she’s going through, I haven’t done much this year!!Please continue praying,Asking for God to give her strength and peace!
Good morning Tipper!!Please continue to always be yourself and keep up those traditions!My family usually put the reindeer antlers and Rudolph’s red nose on our car, but this year I have been really down about my daughter and her situation she’s going through, I haven’t done much this year!!Please continue praying,Asking for God to give her strength and peace!
Over the years I’ve spent a lot of time on the interstates both north and south, and I always love seeing the tractor trailers rolling down the interstate crusted with salt and snow with a big bright green wreath on the front of the radiator. Home is where you make it.
where I come from there are lits of cars decorated for Christmas. from wreaths, to reindeer to Santa and his sleigh. I l9ve it
Love traditions.
Love this — that she saw the photo and wanted to be like her Daddy. I remember the first time I saw one…thought, “Oh, no … that lady must’ve hit something in the tree lot parking lot or something. How did that get on there?” And then laughed at myself when finding out it was on purpose.
it rained for 2 or 3 days, now it is cold again, God bless you friends and Merry Christmas
awwww Kids can sure make you proud and teary eyed cant they—but you have great girls so it is no wonder they would want to be like you and your husband
Gaylia, I remember my father in law saying when your children are little they step on your toes, when they grow up, they step on your heart. He had 5 daughters but no sons. He didn’t have to worry about his girls being out in the world misbehaving. He and their mother set the proper example for them to follow.
Never put a wreath on my car but do put them on my windows and front door.
Randy on your way to Oklahoma you can stop in East Tennessee and I’ll take you to the Waffle House!!!!
Everyone have a great day. Christmas blessings to all.
Brenda, before my aunt and uncle passed away, I would visit them at Chattanooga. They lived off East Brainerd Road. I would go through Gainesville and across to I 75 above Atlanta. I tried to stay out of Atlanta. He would always want to me to bring him some ham biscuits from Katherine’s Kitchen located at Gainesville exit on I 85. If you promise to buy me hash browns at the Waffle House, I will take you up on your offer!
I have saw a few vehicles around here over the years with wreaths or other things tied to the grills. Just a word of caution when doing this, be sure you don’t block the air flow to the radiator and cause your car to run hot. For me, her statement of doing this after seeing her daddy do it has a broader meaning to it, our kids, especially when young, are always watching and imitating what their parents or even grandparents do- what kind of an example are we sitting for them?
I am sorry for spilling my heart out yesterday, I appreciate the replies to me and know there is truth in them. Donna, I read your comment late last night and especially appreciate it. I know and feel God is with me. This is a warning to you, I am already working on a way to get to Oklahoma and take you up on that big hug and a kiss!
Randy, I imagine there is a whole bunch of Blind Pig readers who are right beside Donna. We all love and support you, pray for you, and understand totally as some of us are right where you are, reliving wonderful old times and missing dear loved ones. I think at our age the old beloved memories have been with us the longest, so that is why they are always up front in our minds. It is hard for me to not slip into feeling lonely, but I try to remember what my late husband kept telling me: build on and honor the past memories by making the most of the present. And that is hard, but faith in the Lord keeps me going. The very best to you this Christmas season, and remember, you are not alone – we are all part of the Blind Pig family!
Good morning Randy, you put a huge smile on my face this morning!! Thank you soooo much, you made my day
Reach out should you need a hug!!
Thinking of you….. I know I can’t replace all your loved ones that you’ve lost, however, I find it overwhelming to know their all safe and no one can hurt them ever again!!
Have a great day