Today is Christmas tree decorating day at the Mitchell’s. For many, many years we decorated the Christmas tree on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, Alan would take care of the pizza; home made, delivery or take-out. I would pass out the current years Christmas ornaments. Sean would put the lights on the tree, all the ornaments (from years past) would be laid out and everyone would put them on the tree. The cane canes would go on after all the other decorations. And usually the boys would but the angel on the top of the tree together! IT was a fun way for me to start off the Christmas season and a good family evening for us all.
After the pizza was finished and the tree decorated, we would light some candles, turn off all the lights except the tree and play a few specially selected Christmas songs. I encouraged everyone to wear their comfy clothes and even gave out flannel pants one year for everyone to wear on this family evening. As the boys married their wives and children joined us in this now second generation family tradition. 9 years ago I started a new tradition of giving grandchildren their December pajamas on this evening.
This year however is the second in a row that has been a little different. This year’s ornaments and December pajamas were passed out in October because that’s when I was in Oklahoma! This year there will be no Christmas tree decorating evening at the Mitchell house (we will be on our way home from London). But we do have a tree; our tree (complete with 220V lights) is very small but it is decorated with love and memories of our past years tree decorating evenings!
Maybe I will be back in Oklahoma next year in time to resume this annual tradition, but if not we will make do the best we can.
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