This year’s Christmas tree is the prettiest we’ve ever had! I say that every year, and every year I mean it. I love the ornaments we’ve collected over the years. The ones Granny made sure are special, but so are the ones the girls made in grammar school, Matt’s spark plug, and the ones I’ve crafted. And then there’s the special ones given to us by friends like you.
Over the years we’ve had small trees, fat trees, and too tall trees. But none of that changes my opinion of each year’s being the prettiest.
When I was really young and we lived at Sherlocks just down the road in Martins Creek we most often had a cedar bush as a Christmas tree. I’m sure Pap just went out into the edge of the woods in the pasture and cut it for us. Granny alway made it look pretty.
After we moved here to Wilson holler the tree Pap went to the woods for was a white pine. They smell so good! But they aren’t the best tree for ornaments since their branches are flimsy and sparse. Yet they still make a pretty tree.
In later years we used an artificial tree Granny bought from someone at the flea market. I thought it was lovely too.
Matt and I started out with a live tree back when we were first married. For many years we used an artificial one and now we’re back to live ones.
I guess you could say I’ve never met a Christmas tree I didn’t think was pretty.
Last night’s video: Decorating the Kitchen.
Tipper
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Your tree is beautiful Tipper, especially with all the hand made ornaments. Granny’s little hands sure did put a lot of love and work in over the years. I pray she is feeling better. We have had real and artificial trees over the years. I quit putting up a real tree after the boys grew up , but I sure do love and miss the smell. Growing up for several years we had one of those “awful” silver trees with the color wheel. I hated that tree and was glad when the fad was over. Now I wish I had that tree as nostalgia goes. The beautiful firs and spruces won’t grow down here in the deep/coastal south, although they are sold at stores such as Lowe’s or Tractor Supply. The only naturally grown ones that grow here are red cedar or virginia pine. My most treasured tree of all though is a little fourteen inch tall artificial green metal tree that has tiny red balls and silver snowflakes that dangle from its circular shape. It is a cheap little thing but apparently very sturdy. I bought it at our Family Dollar to put in with Christmas goodies I boxed to send to my soldier son deployed to Afghanistan in 2010. That little tree made it back home with him in perfect condition, and I put it out for Christmas every year. Then in 2018, he was deployed again; this time to Kuwait. That Christmas the little tree was again on it’s way to the Middle East. He returned home safely, along with that special tree. That tough little tree holds an honorable spot in my decor every Christmas. I pray we never see another deployment before he retires, but that little tree holds some bittersweet memories and was a comfort to him from back home.
Cathy, what a precious tree! Thank you for sharing its story and please thank your son for his service!!
Cathy-that is such a sweet and moving story. Thank you for sharing it with all of us and, especially thank your son for his service to our Country.
I love your main tree and the tiny tree . So many special ornaments and sweet memories!
Enjoy the season !
Blessings and love to you and your sweet family!
Your tree is beautiful! I love all the homemade things! I loved watching you go through the ornaments.
We had two inches of snow last night and are expecting another 5″-8″ tomorrow evening with below zero temps. We will be keeping the fire stoked and a pot of soup on.
Bless y’all!
Your tree IS beautiful. Mine is still in the box waiting to be put up…..
We put up an artificial tree that is 6 feet tall and looks very real. My son is allergic, so we had to start using them many years ago. I miss the smell, but I love that I can put it up on Thanksgiving evening and keep it up until January. We always had a real tree while I was growing up. I remember one year my little brother took a sled and went all alone to cut down a tree for Christmas. He was probably 12 years old. He looked so cute pulling that tree home..all proud of himself. Our trees usually had one side that wasn’t so great and we would just put it in the back. After decorating, all Christmas trees are like yours,Tipper…the most beautiful one ever! My Christmas tree is covered with memories that take me back in time and bless me each time I look at it. Have a wonderful weekend everyone.
Love the antlers topping it! How unique!
Beautiful! Memories and hearts full of love shine brightly on your tree. Merry Christmas.
The love you put into it is what makes your tree beautiful.
I love your tree. Our’s is similar- a tree full of ornaments that hold a special place in my heart!
Beautiful Christmas tree & house decorations.
As always praying for Granny.
At 79 years old, I wish I could still have that awesome smelling cedar tree for Christmas!!!
My husband (not a country kid, like me, calls cedars Christmas bushes!!!
When we were young my dad was a logger so he would bring a half a dozen trees home for mom to pick one she liked best. You wouldn’t do that today! I love your tree Tipper, it’s beautiful!
Every year I open the ornament boxes and go back in time, it’s a wonderful thing.
I love Christmas trees of all kinds but have a fondness for what has been called the ‘Charlie Brown’ type tree – one that is not perfect and unwanted by most. Once one puts their ‘memories and love’ decorations on it, it becomes a lovely tree to behold – just as a ‘perfect’ tree would be. Daddy always went out into the woods to find us a tree, which we then proceeded to decorate with mostly homemade decorations, including the ‘paper chain’ and stringed popcorn, and small and large red and white candy canes…and don’t forget lots of tinsel! The lights were those old big bulbs and it always had an ‘angel’ for the topping. I enjoy seeing your tree each year because there are so many memories and so much love added to it with each decoration. Hope you will show us Granny’s tree too and I continue to pray she will have a really good Christmas.
Your tree is beautiful! I love it when the ornaments all have meaning. We have had an artificial tree for years. I have ornaments from Mama’s tree when she was a child, I have ornaments from my childhood, my girls’ childhood, and ornaments Mama made.
Beautiful tree Tipper! The tree of memories!
We always had a cedar tree when I was growing up in Eastern NC. It was an exciting day when my dad went down in the woods (our property) and came back home with a “Christmas tree”. The woods were next to the fields that he tended so in the fall he would choose a tree he thought would be the perfect one for our Christmas tree that year. Christmas brings such sweet memories of days gone by.
I just loved watching you pick up your your trees and other ornaments, while you reminisced about their origins. Theme trees can be beautiful but give me my tree full of memories, with ornaments from as far back as the 1920s(my great grandma). This is my 48th “adult” tree and every year my decorations mean even more to me. Having my first great grandchild (6 months on the 26th) is just adding another layer of love during this season. Merry Christmas to you all and prayers for Granny. I’ve been fighting the “C” word for the past 2 years. Holding my own at the moment but bless her heart for all she’s going through. I love seeing all of her lovingly created crochet projects ♡
Kim, I’m sorry you are dealing with that too. I will pray for you!!
Such memories! I loved being the first up on Christmas morning. I’d sit in the living room all by myself savoring the sights of the lights on the tree and stacks of gifts under it. One of my best Christmases was the year my mom made life sized dolls wearing my sister’s play clothes and sitting at new desks for us. It took me awhile to figure out why many of my friends got less than I did; my dad had a good job.
Well Tipper, your tree is especially beautiful. Bought back so many memories of growing up in northwestern Georgia in the late 50’s, 60’s and 70’s. As a young girl we to had a cedar tree, later we had the aluminum tree with the color wheel light. Man, we thought we were up town, later back to a live tree. My dad worked in the Talc mines, so his income was very slim. Our ornaments were few, with many homemade. Like you, we always thought it was the most beautiful one each year. I’m now 76 and still have some of my childhood ornaments, mainly I have my memories and most times I shed happy tears of Christmases long past. So many of the Appalachia phrases I still use and hear today. Thank you for bringing back the sweet past…
Merry Christmas to your Sweet Family..
Much prayers for Granny.
A very pretty tree. The ornaments attached to memories are the best. Hope Granny and your family have a great Christmas,
Oh, I bought 4 tiny Cedar like trees and am going to plant them in my front yard to give a wind and sun break for the trailer.
It is snowing here again today, yep it snowed yesterday. The weather service says 1-3 inches today. Your tree is so beautiful. I just watched your kitchen decorating video. I keep a small white wire, lighted tree on the tiny bar at my kitchen sink. It has candy canes on it year round for stirring hot chocolate. I love Christmas decorations and music. When I sew or crochet I want Christmas music playing ’cause it sets a snazzy pace and keeps me from tiring out too quickly. I locked myself out of the trailer this past weekend and not one of my new neighbors down the hollow would come to their doors to see if this old lady needed help : Except one. TY GOD for this nice man that invited me into his warm house, called a locksmith for me (I have no cell phone) and drove me back up the hollow to wait for the locksmith. Keeping everyone here and all the folks up Wilson Hollow in my prayers. I love Y’all.
My tree is live and self decorating. To me it is the prettiest Christmas tree I’ve ever seen. Probably that’s because God grew it.
It is red and green with ephemeral flying ornaments.
Jeffery in Alabama, I wrote a reply to your reply/comment to me about Walmart and the price of shotgun shells today. If you have not already done so, I would like for you to look back and read my comment about how many of us bought shotgun shells in the past.
I agree! When I was little we had a live tree in the den and a silver one in the living room on a table so it could be seen by passerbys. We had a multi colored wheel that turned and cast colors on the silver tree. It was so fun. Now that I live by myself, I have a pretty pencil tree in the foyer that gets decorations. It has burlap as the tree skirt. But now that my daughter, son-in-law and grands are moving up closer, they want a real tree next year. . And you know Nanny will get one to make them happy. Three years ago I bought a snowman Christmas tree from Walmart. It stands three feet tall has a head and scarf and the tree is its body. I love it! TGIF
It’s a beautiful tree! I know it’s hard to visualize, but my tree is made from horseshoes (cut in half) and rebar. It’s very rustic (and heavy) & I love it. I’ve had it for about 20 years now & I love it. Merry Christmas to you & your family & prayers for Granny.
Tipper your tree is very pretty so full of special ornaments and memories behind each one, I know your daughters and grandsons love it also, you said something about Matt’s spark plug so did he make a ornament out of a spark plug if he did that is very special too!!! I Ihope you and your family have a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year, Just so you know I love each and every story your share with me each and every day and I hope I’m up your way someday and get to meet you at a book signing and I can’t wait for you to read us another book , they are always special meanings behind every page, Love you and family , Merry Christmas Regina
Nice!!!
It is beautiful! A tree full of love and memories could only ever be beautiful. ❤️
I love an old fashioned Christmas tree. Yours is beautiful.
I love your tree! it is beautiful.
We have always had live trees; when I was a kid, my grandmother’s cousin would come about the second week of December and bring us a spruce or fir that he had cut wild for us from the family homeplace in West Virginia. After he moved from there, we had to start buying them locally but always a Frasier fir. I love their smell, and their branches are usually sturdy enough for the heavy ornaments that we have. Not sure I could ever make the switch to an artificial tree; it just wouldn’t be the same.
We’ve used live and artificial through the years. I don’t remember ever buying a live tree but one time. We bought a live one with a root ball intending to plant it after Christmas. A blizzard hit Christmas Eve and the ground was covered and then frozen for two weeks. We planted it but it didn’t survive. The last few years with just the two of us we just put something on the door and enjoy the decorations of others. It would take all day to get everything out and decorate and then most of a day to box everything up and put it back in storage.
We finally started using artificial tree last year due to rising costs. We liked the white pine until the are area suppliers quit offering them. They did not shed the needles as much and the limbs were even spaced. I do miss the cedars though
Richard, my son and his friend worked after getting off from their regular jobs delivering Christmas trees for one of the already cut tree suppliers at Greenville, SC. He can tell you many tales about some buying trees too big for their home and other similar tales. One he particularly liked to tell is of the some of the richer folks buying their tree or trees on Thanksgiving day and then coming back a week before Christmas, buying more “fresher” trees to replace the ones they had bought back at Thanksgiving. He would laugh and say they have more money than sense, they don’t realize these “fresh” trees were cut and delivered at the same time as the trees they are wanting to replace. He made a good bit of extra money doing this.
Yep, I can see that; each tree different and each have individual memories around it. Never thought of it in just that way before but Christmas has about it not just the year in review but even lives in review up to that time. Your thinking each one is the best ever shows once again what we know about you. You notice and appreciate things and people. It is a very good life skill to have.
Your tree looks very nice & is filled with love. I really enjoyed watching you tell about each ornament as you unboxed it. I felt like I was right there with you. Matt got you the perfect tree for your buffet. Can’t wait to watch you put together the swag.
There’s just something about a Christmas tree that makes the whole house feel warm, festive, and filled with love and the holiday spirit! Y’all’s tree IS indeed beautiful! I love all of the handmade ornaments by Granny and the girls, too. Those little handmade and kid-made touches are what really makes a tree special, I think. I don’t really follow a color-theme on ours—just the same ornaments collected over the years along with some Xander & Scarlette made at school and in Cub Scouts over their younger years (now they’re both teenagers and new ornaments aren’t coming home—I miss that a bunch!) I have some my Granny made and even some I made some 30+ years ago as a kid. Those little touches just make a tree special!
I love Christmas trees too–sometimes I think it is choice of ornaments (old classic ones and home made ones) then I think no it is the twinkling lights–all colors are pretty but my preference is the multi colored ones, I suppose because I grew up with the old big glass multi colored lights that did not twinkle they just stayed on (guess changing light sequence either was not developed yet or was unaffordable for my parents plus we did not buy new every year like people do now, it was the same thing year after year). We too just went into the pasture and cut a cedar tree down, either my dad or one of my older brothers would do that chore. Can not believe it is almost Christmas—Thank You God for sending us Your Son
As always, lifting you and your family in prayer.
Gaylia, I remember the old time big (thumb size) glass bulb multi colored string lights. By today’s standards they would be considered dangerous if for no other reason than the heat from them.
Randy, we had those lights decade’s ago, mom had fancy metal rings that you put around each light to keep the lights from touching the tree. They did get very hot so it was a serious hazard for fires.
Your tree is so beautifully decorated. You should have a game to find where you put the spark plug. That would be fun.
Love you all.
I love them all too. We’ve always had an artificial except for one year I think. I think all are just lovely. They all have a personality.
Your tree is absolutely BEAUTIFUL!!!
good morning, you have a beautiful tree Tipper, we always used cedar tree, heavenly father in the name of Jesus please bless granny today, no pain no suffering, comfort her Lord, give her strength to endure, bless her family, strengthen them, bless them Lord, in Jesus name Amen
Amen. A beautiful and perfect prayer for such a beloved lady. And Amen. Thank you so much Mr. Norman Merry Christmas and many blessings to all.
What a beautiful tree! It’s always enjoyable unpacking the boxes to see all the ornaments year after year. I love to finish my tree with tinsel and it shimmers with the white lights. Enjoy the holiday season.
For many years during my childhood and in my early married life we would use a common wild grown red cedar tree from our property. Later on we started using an artificial tree, now after my wife’s death, my son and I don’t do any Christmas decorating. My wife loved to decorate for Christmas, now my heart is not in it. I have always loved the smell of a cedar tree and red berry holly, it always meant Christmas for me. I would get the holly from a holly tree on my neighbor’s property. Yes I had his permission. Some “outsider” now owns the property and did away with the tree. I have also been known to shoot mistletoe out of trees to use as decoration. I never had much luck with it getting me more sugar! Now memories of the past with family members that have passed on in is all that is left for me.
Mr Randy, Your lovely wife probably wouldn’t want you to be so sad at this time of year. If you did decorate, she’d probably be right there with you, in memories of all the wonderful Christmases that you celebrated together. Now she’s there in your heart and will be so until you get to join her, when it’s your time, again in heaven above. A glorious reunion I’m sure. I hope you know I will say prayers for your sadness and hope you feel better about special holidays. Hopefully the way she’d want. May you have a better Christmas this year and may you be blessed above measure, in the name of Jesus Amen.
To Miss Tipper, might I say your tree is lovely and y’all’s decorations, around the house, are so pretty and evokes all y’alls sweet memories. I can only imagine how wonderful each room smells so fresh of the outdoors. God bless y’all today tomorrow and always.