Traditions 2

The TREE!

On Christmas Eve, after all the food at grandma's, and before midnight mass, my dad would drag us out to cut down a tree. It was cold, and wet, but we loved it. He only took us a few times, most of the time the tree was cut down a few days before, and stored out side.

He would put up the tree after dinner, and then spend like hours fighting with it. He would add branches. Yes, like drill a hole in the trunk and add a branch or two, ect. It was hard work for a man already full of food and booze, but he did it. LOL

then after Midnight mass, and after we went to bed, the tree was decorated. We never saw it happen. My sister would wake me up like 3 in the morning (I'm sure Mom and dad just managed to go to bed by then) and we would sneak downstairs, and WOW WOW WOW A fully decorated tree stood there, all lighted up, with tons of gifts!!!! We of course didn't go near it, just sneaked back up stairs, eyes all glowing, and back to bed. We woke up again like at 7 or 8 in the morning, and dragged Mom and dad out of bed. I always wondered why they looked like Zombies as we opened gifts...... LOL they were sleep deprived, exhausted, and refused to let us open anything till they had coffee in hand.

It amazes me to this day, how they had the time, and energy to do all that!!!!!! I could never do it!!!!! NEVER!!!!!

This is probably why I believe in putting up the tree right after thanksgiving. We never had the chance to sit for days and love the tree. it went up that evening, and down a few days later. So I set mine up early to give it the proper love it deserves. And I refuse to use a real tree! I remember even as a baby being soooooo sad that a pretty tree had to die for Christmas!!!! I just can't see killing a living tree for my amusement! Though I miss the sweet smell, I think it's worth it.

But the decorations!!!! They used electric lights for the tree, back then that were huge!!! Big bulbs, and you had a round circle of colored, pleated, tin around the base of the lights, so they reflected off it, and were bright, bright, bright!!!!!

I hate these tiny lights we use now!!!!! I WANT THE BIG ONES BACK!!!!

And all the glass ornaments. Most of the time 1 or 2 bit the dust while doing the tree, and usually the cat broke at least 1 of them, but they were very pretty. Tea pots, and birds, butterflies, huge tear drops with pictures in the center, and all kinds of things, unlike the plain round balls we have now, the ones back then were all different shapes and sizes. Pretty, but very delicate!!!

I miss the pretty ones, maybe that's why I'm never satisfied with the ones I buy each year, they are round, plain, and just yucky! I would love to see the old ones, shaped like pretty tea pots and birds back again!!!