When do you decorate your home for Christmas?

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Convert_in_99

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**PLEASE DON’T TURN THIS THREAD INTO A DEBATE!

Being a convert to the Church, I am simply wanting an estimate of what is “normal” for Catholics and Christmas Decorating.

So…when do you decorate your home for Christmas? ****🙂

And for that matter…when do you take your decorations down? **
 
We technically decorate the last week of Advent for Christmas. However, DH and I (only having celebrated 1 Christmas together thus far) decided last year, we wanted to decorate for Advent as well, especially since we came from two very different decorating timing families. His decorates the day after Thanksgiving and mine usually waits til about Christmas Eve since Christmas really doesn’t begin until the 25th and plus my family is not terribly organized.

So, this year, we have purple lights and bulbs to put on our tree and an Advent wreath and calendar that we will put up. Right before Christmas day we’re going to switch and put everything else up :).

Oh, and we take everything down sometime after the Epiphany. 🙂
 
Now that I am alone, I don’t really decorate. When I did, the decorations went up during the first week of Advent and came down after the traditional Epiphany.
 
**I haven’t figured it out myself yet, lol. Before I converted I used to decorate as soon as possible (one year it was the day after Halloween:p).

Now that I have a bit more understanding of the season I’d like to put more focus into the Christmas season (dec.25 to the Epiphany). So I am trying to figure out how to have the appropriate amount of decorations up to be able to get into the spirit of anticipating Jesus’ birth but then have the most up to celebrate Christmas…it’s tough!:eek:

We have our lights on our house early though because once it snows here it’s too dangerous for hubby to get up on the roof (it’s steep). So they are up but not lit.

I look forward to seeing the replies you get (as long as it doesn’t turn into a debate)

Malia
**
 
Lotus:

In addition to Christmas decorations, we had an Advent wreath and said Advent prayers up to Christmas Eve. The gifts never went under the tree before Christmas Eve.

I only mention this because you so right! It is entirely too easy in the consumerized holiday season to lose sight of Advent season.
 
We’re both slobs when it comes to decoration… last year, it was a day or two before New Year’s Eve* that we put up the small plastic tree that we have. Then we waited until spring to chuck it, still fully decorated, to the attic. So, it will be easier this year. 😃

I guess when our kid(s) start caring about the whole ‘decorations’ part of Christmas more, we’ll try harder. :rolleyes:
  • One good thing about living in a post-Communist country: the whole commercionalized hubbub is reserved for New Year’s Eve (which is 7 days BEFORE Christmas in Old Calendar EO) - Christmas is JUST a religious, family-oriented holiday. 👍
 
We decorate the weekend after Thanksgiving…
My boys enjoy playing with the train set under the tree… so we like having it up for a while. It doesn’t come down until after Epiphany…
 
Second to third week of December
My older sister and I have mid December birthdays…so my parents never did anything Christmas until after the birthdays. I followed that tradition except I do put out the Advent wreath and nativity set, When my children were small we always put the tree up on my birthday and then they fixed me dinner (mac and cheese, pizza) It made my birthday an “occasion” and as a single parent with a limited budget it wasn’t an extra strain on the $$ cause the tree was factored into the budget. My daughter who is away at college has called me the last three years to wish me a happy birthday and ask if I got the tree yet!
 
We decorate about 1-2 weeks before Christmas. I don’t like to put it up by myself (it’s fake) and the kids are to small to put it together. So I have to do it when my husband is able to help, since he works on Christmas Eve we need to put it up before hand KWIM? He works a lot.

My kids do put decorations on, but the tree is to big (I wish it were smaller but it was free) for just me to do.

We take down the tree after Epiphany.

Last year we got the tree up and then the next weekend decorated it. LOL sigh 🙂

I really want to do more with Advent (I’m a convert so I am still learning), I’m hoping to get an Advent wreath. 🙂
 
2 of the last three years I was either 9 months pregnant or had a newborn at Christmas, so we decorated when we got the chance 😃 Oh, and the other “off” year we had just moved and so we only did “light” decorations (nativity set, advent wreath, and a 2 foot tall fake tree).

This year we will probably decorate no earlier than the 3rd week of advent. I would like to wait until Christmas Eve (less chance of toddlers climbing it and getting into mischief ;)), but we’ll just have to wait and see what our family get-together schedule is like. We’ll leave it up until Epiphany if the kids are able to treat the tree nicely. 🙂
 
**I never did put in my vote. :o

Christmas lights and decorations are SO therapeutic for me. 🙂 During a season (winter) when my depression kicks into over drive, its so nice to have something different, warm, cheery and special in our apartment.

So…I decorate usually thanksgiving weekend, or the first week of advent. I leave up the decorations as long as I possibly can (or until hubby says its time for them to come down. ;):p) But he knows**** how therapeutic they are for me…so they stay up well into January. 👍
**
 
We decorate whenever is the best weekend for everyone in the family. Usually this is the weekend after Thanksgiving, or the first week of advent though. However, this year, since I am at college, my family is going to wait until I come home (around December 8) to put up the Christmas tree, since we always do that together.
 
We usually don’t decorate for Christmas until at least the 3rd week of Advent (pink candle). I try to hold off as long as possible. Last year I got a few Advent decorating items, but my mom said the wreath (with a dark purple bow) looked like the house was in mourning! :rolleyes: The Advent wreath is our main decoration. We light the candles for any meal we have together

We definately don’t take things down until after Epiphany. I like to have a party for Epiphany. We’ve been talking about going hard-core and leaving the decorations up until Feb 2, the Presentation of Our Lord.

{{I do put up the pagan snowflake decorations (big joke! 😛 ) at the beginning of December because we are always ready for snow. }}
 
I voted T’giving weekend since we usually start as soon as the guests leave. Decorating is one of the ways I prepare for Christmas so I make it last all the way until Christmas eve. I put the Advent decorations out first and then put out little by little ending with the window lights and putting baby Jesus in all the nativities on Christmas eve.

I start taking down on Jan. 6 but do not put everything away at once. I leave the nativities for last and they don’t get put away until Feb.2.
 
You left off the the option “who has time to decorate?”

That’s the one I would choose!
 
1ke said:
You left off the the option “who has time to decorate?”

That’s the one I would choose!
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:rotfl: I know this may sound scroogey, but on the years when we only put up the nativity set and Advent wreath I’ve never been sorry. Cleaning up all those decorations is such a hassle!

But on the other hand, I’ve never been sorry to go all-out with the decorations either. They do make the home so special during my favorite time of year! (But keep in mind that this is coming from the mom of a family where 3 out of the 4 family birthdays occur within 20 days of Christmas–so it’s a very festive time for us regardless!)
 
I didn’t vote because the decorations go up in stages throughout December. We need to get the outdoor lights up before the first big snow, so those will probably go up this weekend if it’s not too cold. We’re curious to get a look at our new artificial tree so that will probably go up this weekend as well, along with the lights we bought for it (have to make sure they all work). Everything else including the tree ornaments will go up as we have time.
 
Corki said:
I start taking down on Jan. 6 but do not put everything away at once. I leave the nativities for last and they don’t get put away until Feb.2.
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This is a great idea! I think I’m going to start doing this too :).
 
We put up the tree and nativity set the first week of Advent (or try to…), but we do not light the tree or put baby Jesus out until Christmas Eve or Christmas Day, depending on our travel schedule to see family. That way, we can enjoy the decorations longer, but there is still the anticipation and waiting that reminds us that we are in the Advent season.

We always wait until after the Epiphany to take down.
 
I understand people who decorate after Thanksgiving.
BUT…

What about those people who decorate after Halloween? As I’ve been driving I’ve seen people putting up Christmas lights the weekend after Halloween. Okay, that makes since considering it can get very cold and snowy here during Nov/Dec… UNTIL… I drive by again in the evening and the lights are on!!! No joke, even the lit up giant plastic reindeer and snowmen are lit… It’s not after Thanksgiving yet!! It was literally on the weekend after Halloween. These past few weeks I’ve seen a total of 6 house with their full Christmas lights out and ON… :eek:
 
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