A CHRISTMAS TREE!

the first saturday in december is always my favorite. not because it’s december {well, that, too} but because as a family we go out to get our christmas tree! i am not sure when the tradition started, but as long as i can remember we all piled into the truck, blasted christmas music and felt like little kids as we made our way to the tree farm. now, i set up my own christmas tree about a week ago, because, well, i just couldn’t wait. and can you blame me?

so after i woke up from my cold induced sleep {come on, body, it’s almost gone!} and my brother got home from work, we all set out in the freezing cold to Galehouse Tree Farms in Doylestown, OH. this year it was my brother’s turn to pick out the tree, and while i am more for the biggest, fattest and most full tree, my brother loves the traditional triangle shape. and i think he picked the perfect one this year. it has already proven to bring memories into the Rhodes household because yesterday, it rained in our living room. it was so muddy outside that the tree was a little dirty. to clean it off, my dad had to spray it down. well, we may have brought it in a little too early out of excitement because it sounded like an actual rainfall as the droplets fell and soaked our carpet. all is well now, but that sure was interesting!

pictures, if you are wondering, were taken with my iphone and edited with the VSCOcam app.

^^^ except for the muddy ground, it was the perfect day for picking out our christmas tree.

^^^ one of the best parts of this farm is it has live reindeer. can’t help but think of the film, Prancer, when seeing them.

^^^ chopping down our own tree is always so exciting. although, someday, it would be cool to live in the city and go to a tree farm on the side of the street. looks so festive.

^^^ brave brother carrying to ginormous tree to the car. he may have almost fallen over but recovered pretty quickly.

^^^ the inside of the barn is beautiful! you can buy hot chocolate, hot cider and popcorn, sit by the fire and warm up by the fire from the cold. there are also some amazing christmas decorations, ornaments and treats in there as well.

^^^ zip was extra loveable on the way to the farm and home. i think he was happy to get to go pick out our tree!

the smallest christmas tree…

…is currently set up in my bedroom at the foot of my bed taking up the only remaining space i had left in my room. but it’s perfect and it reminds me of my grandma.

every year after thanksgiving, i would spend the weekend at my grandmas {it would take the whole weekend} to help her set up her Christmas decorations and Christmas tree. she wasn’t always a huge fan of the tree, seeing it as something that took a bit to take out, put together and put the ornaments on. but somehow, every year, it was so much fun.

we would watch Christmas movies on TV or listen to music as we unwrapped all of her decorations and set them out. every year she would joke how she needed to start throwing things away because she had too much stuff. she never did and she kept buying more ;)

^^^ a German family tradition. to hide the pickle and find it on Christmas eve.

this is the first holiday season without her. and it makes me sad a lot. when she passed away, i asked for her Christmas tree. not knowing where i could put it at the time, we put it up in the attic along with the ornaments.

of course, i missed the routine of setting it up and a few days ago, i decided to put it up.

opening the box, i got the biggest smile on my face. the smell of her and her apartment enveloped me and made my heart happy. i brought the tree up to my room and put it together. and i felt her there with me the entire time.

guest post: holiday traditions

Want to add a few new traditions to your families upcoming holidays? Here are a few of my favorites.

Christmas Tree Search Party-

My family drives up north about an hour to go to a Christmas tree farm where there are horse rides, bonfires, apple cider, hot cocoa, smores, tire swings and lots of other fun activities. (They have beer or whiskey for the men in my family). It’s great fun to watch tipsy family members tease each other and argue over what tree is better.

The Christmas Pickle-

It’s rumored that Germans brought over this goody. A Pickle Christmas Tree ornament is hidden some where on the Christmas Tree. Who ever finds the pickle gets the prize (at least that’s the rules my mother goes by). Our family prize is always a gift card. Some families though say that it represents the persons good fortune for the upcoming year.

Gingerbread houses (Ew!)

I have never enjoyed ginger bread so my mother always let me make my house with graham crackers. Waaayyy better (thanks mom!). One might think that building gingerbread houses is silly when you’re no longer 10. I beg to differ. When Rach and I were 17 and 19 we made fabulous little love shacks… I mean houses. Some great memories always come from trying to sabotage another’s work. Done with sisterly love, I assure you.

The Festival of Lights

“Get in the car!” Mother was always so patient. Another great thing my family does is load up in the car with whatever snacks we have made (fudge or popcorn balls) and set off to see what neighborhood has been deemed the most amazing place for Christmas lights displays. It’s really cool to see how creative people get and guess how much their electric bill is.

Hanukkah is celebrated in a great way. People light a candle to remember the great miracle their God provided them with when they had no oil to keep their lamps lit. The lamp they had stayed lit for 8 days. So every night for 8 days in a row they light one of the candles with the help of a 9th candled the shamash (helper). They also love to fry food during these 8 days to celebrate even being able to have oil.

My family goes to midnight mass. Pretty much so we can stay awake (hyped up on coffee and ridiculous amounts of sugar) and open a few presents before exhaustion over takes us. (When I say us I mean the adults.)

Movies are beyond important in our family. It’s how we get the kids to sit down and shut up while we cook. I’m kidding…al though I did hear my grandmother say that when I was younger. My favorite is A White Christmas. My mom loves all things Charlie Brown. I’ll just make a list for you:

A Christmas Story, Miracle on 34th street, The Muppet Christmas Carol, The Santa Clause (Tim the Tool Man Taylor), Elf, The Grinch Who Stole Christmas, Rudolph the Red-Nose Reindeer, Frosty the Snowman, and It’s a Wonderful Life.

Dear Santa Letters.  How cute is this? I’m going to do this when I have my own children.

I think that’s all my family does. Share your family traditions for the upcoming holidays below.

xo oneofficialhotmess