Bee~ Journal of then...

[Farmfresh]

When the kids were little I stayed home with them so we only had one small income as well. Always on that tight budget. I would give the kids their Christmas budget each year. They had to decide what they really wanted that would fit their budget. They are all very shrewd shoppers to this day!

They were also given some Christmas money each year and they were expected to buy or make presents for everyone on the list using that money. They had the most fun with that part of Christmas and always came up with very thoughtful little gifts for everyone. It is better to give that receive after all.

 

[Beekissed]

Yes, I love giving! But I really, really like to receive......hugs and kisses!

 

[dragonlaurel]

Your decorations are going to be great. Natural decorations always appeal to me most. I use fresh evergreen branches to decorate but like to have a potted tree and plant it later.
I'm not in the mood to do them yet. I like my holidays one at a time.

 

[justusnak]

We love to decorate inside and out. I usually put up 2 trees inside. One for the family room....one for the living room, upstairs. Every room, even the bathroom, gets decorated. The chicken coops all get some sort of deco,( the small coop has thier own small tree decorated and lit) and this year the barn will too! We have, ohhhh, I think a dozen of the white lighted deer..some standing head up, some head down, some laying, and some jumping....we also have a white lighted sleigh..and a colorfull Santa for it. I have polar bears...pinguins..lolli pops...candy canes...and several of the small lit evergreens...and of course, the nativity. Yup....we go all out decorateing. Going to get started here soon..as it takes forever to get them all out, working, and lit.

 

[Farmfresh]

A good investment we made last year was several strands of LED Christmas lights (when they went on sale.)

We placed one strand of white LED's around the inside of my front porch roof and hooked it to a daylight timer. My front porch light has not worked for years and this provided a nice gentle glow for my entry. We liked it so well we left it up and it has been gently lighting my front porch all year turning on at dusk and off at dawn for the last year AND using very little electricity in the process!

 

[Beekissed]

Farm, I saw the same concept in someone's coop in BYC....thought it was great!!! How pretty!

 

[lorihadams]

We string lights on our split rail fence that borders our front yard and put some on the front porch. I have wreaths that go on all the front windows and little ones that go on every fence post. Our tree is very minimalist. I made angels out of felt years ago and they are on the tree in maroon, navy blue and dark purple. I also have little wooden birdhouses that are hung by twine that I painted in the same shades as the angels. I string gold ribbon through a gold jingle bell and hang it on the tree too. White lights and voila! Last year I didn't put anything up until the week before Christmas though, between the kids and the dog's tail the tree is very vulnerable....one good thing though, nothing breakable on the tree!

Here's a tip for you if you do lights every year....wind them up on extension cord reels and label them. We have one for the tree, one for the left side of the fence and one for the right, and one for the porch lights. Makes it so easy to stay organized.

 

[Beekissed]

That is a great idea! I always have a mess because putting the lights up is so much more fun than taking them down.....we usually just try to do our best and shove them in a bag!

 

[Farmfresh]

Lori that reminds me of when MY kids were little!

One time the whole tree came crashing down! Amazingly very little was broken, but after that we put a heavy duty plant hook in the ceiling and then tied the top of the tree to it. After that no more crashes.

 

[Javamama]

We are going to take advantage of this nice weather we are having and put up some lights outdoors. Never done that before due to expenses, but this year I was able to buy some LED lights I found at Lowes for a great price. I looked for clearance lights after the holidays last year but they were gone before I got out to shop.
We are making egg decorations for the tree and for gifts, like the ones on the thread at BYC. So pretty!
I don't know how much indoor decorating I'll do. Last year I only put up the tree because I was tired and stressed.
Maybe I'll decorate the coop just to freak out the ladies. half of them aren't paying rent anyway so I may as well have some fun with them
I had 3 hens START a molt this week. WTH? It's November and it's COLD!
Better go ramble somewhere else now, good talking to you all here!