Outdoor Christmas Decor
November 29, 2012 | My Jottings
When I was growing up, one year my father hung a string of multi-colored Christmas lights on our house in West Covina, California. I loved them. But then for two years afterward, no one took them down. We didn’t light them after the holiday season had passed, but in my memory I can still see those lights hanging there just under the eaves, even during the summer months. I guess my parents became House Blind, you know, when you live with something in your surroundings for so long that you stop seeing it?
Anyway, I’ve never been one to have outdoor Christmas decorations in my yard. We like to drive around each December to see what other people have done and we love to oooh and aaah; they even have a contest in our city and some folks literally fill their yards with every conceivable light, cartoon figure, Santa on the roof, reindeer with slowly bobbing heads, nativity scene, and giant candy cane.
Yesterday I went to my mailbox and found nine catalogs there. It’s that time of year, and I recycle all of them and don’t buy a thing. But in one of the catalogs, there was an outdoor Christmas display that caught my eye. I actually considered it for about a minute, thinking of where in the corner of our yard we could situate it. But then I thought better of it, because I’m not really an Outdoor Christmas Decoration Type Person.
But if I were, here’s what might sit in our yard:
Do you have any Christmas decor in your yard or on the outside of your house? If you’re in my area, I’d love to come see it! If not, I’d love to hear about it. If you send me a picture, I’ll post it here on the blog.
God bless your day. And indeed, peace be unto you….
No to outdoor decorations but Cait adores them so we always do a drive~by to see what people have done ~ especially on the mainland.
Sounds like our tradition, Ganeida. I suppose it’s too warm where you are to take along hot chocolate, eh? xxoo
More icy ginger beer. Mmmm 🙂
That sounds interesting! 🙂
That display was made for you Julie!! Consider becoming an Outdoor Christmas Decoration Type Person–I find lights in the night at this darkish time of year to be spirit lifting. Also, I urge you to consider what a poignant message it would send to THOSE neighbors. I am an energy conservationist (my own energy, that is) and would do very little decorating if it were up to me. But my husband starts the ball rolling and I always enjoy the end result. When he gets our white lights and spearmint balls up, I will send you a photo!
I so enjoyed your comments, Jodi. I am an energy conservationist too! Hahaha. I agree with you about lights being the RX in this dark part of the world, I just want someone else to do it, since I am an energy conservationist. 😀 And THOSE neighbors would probably think the display too bright or gaudy. 😮
I can’t wait for the picture! Thank you Jodi… xxoo
We don’t put up outdoor lights. Alan is trying to reduce our energy bills as much as possible and wouldn’t appreciate all the extra costs involved. 🙂 Also, as I’m not at all artistic, any lights I arranged would unfortunately be totally lacking in taste. ( Alan says that even our Christmas tree looks like a tart after I’ve finished with it! 🙂 )
We do like to see other people’s lights though.
🙂 Hello Kay and Alan! Have a blessed weekend! xxoo
Merry Christmas Jewel!
I love Leetle Bubbbbah’s deck deco! The girl can turn a bough and branch into a work of art! I had a beautiful blue spruce purposely planted just to the left of my kitchen window so that we could put lights on it for Christmas. I did not want it to turn out a HUGE tree and THOUGHT I had read the description carefully…not so… For the first 3 years I had WAY too many lights on it and so did not care, to the delight of Minnesota Power! Then I started to need a step ladder to get to the top…inconvenient, but whatever. The next year it was a pain throwing the lights WAY UP THERE from the ladder…not whatever. Then it happened! Over the winter, that tree grew 4 feet (or so) and in the spring the lights were cherry picker high! Seeing how we don’t HAVE a cherry picker and I would not let Peter buy one
(which I know he was thinking would have been a GREAT idea) the lights were gonna have to stay. And they did/have /are still. For the next few years, people would sit in my swing and the sun would hit one of those lights and catch their eye. It was a Lake Wobegone moment… “So whatcha got them Christmas lights still on that spruce tree for in da summer?” They are still on the tree today, the tree is 400 feet tall and no one asks anymore because only airplanes flying over our house can see them…but I do still wonder what passenger flying over does catch the sun glinting off one of the paint peeled bulbs and thinks, “why the heck do they still have Chritmas lights on that tree in the summer?” Sometimes you just have to worry about somethun else……….
Ginny, your story here is why I think you should have a blog. You are a gifted, funny writer! Thank you for telling us your Christmas lights tale….sooo great! xxoo