Last Christmas was the first time my wife and I put up decorations at our place…but it was the first Christmas that we’ve spent together at home in almost 20 years.
Growing up, my family’s custom was that decorations went up on the 24th, and came down on the 6th, reflecting the Christian liturgical calendar. However, we did have an Advent wreath in season.
Growing up my parents always did after Thanksgiving. Now me and my wife are grinches I guess cuz we don’t do squat
I might agree with BG5150 but I’m still trying to parse your statement.
just say no to decorations.
You guys can keep your black Friday crap. It’s now commonplace in Canada and has pretty much wiped out boxing day. Boxing day is in the 26th of december and it was a huge returns and sales day. With actual decent sales, not limited supplies of shady electronics like we see in black Friday.
Stuff goes up whenever (after Thanksgiving) I get around to it (usually corresponding to having visitors). As far as when it comes down:
That’s really what you’re “supposed” to do, but stores trying to drum up holiday business started putting decorations up earlier and earlier.
I used to think it was really sad that my MIL didn’t decorate for Christmas. But now I get it. She commuted 50 miles one way to work. She was a nurse so she was on her feet all day. She came home and helped with her husband’s business. Her husband and teenage son weren’t going to help decorate.
That’s just a perspective I didn’t have as a young married no kids who grew up with a SAH mom. Also decorating was a family affair for us. And it was much simpler. A tree and stockings, maybe a few knick knacks. A Nativity. There was no redecorating the entire house and lighting up the neighborhood.
I just had a Facebook memory come up that read:
"The problem with only having one husband is that, if he leaves to go get his haircut and you subsequently find a large NOPE in one of your Christmas ornament boxes, you really have nobody around to stop you from burning the whole house down.
Related: I was promised no beetles."
Later in the comments:
“IT WAS A COCKROACH!!!#^%$%&^”
So I guess November 9th is when I started decorating in 2019.
There was a TV commercial where the lady was a nurse and looked like a single mother. (Well, SHE didn’t, the commercial portrayed her situation that way.)
The son goes out and buys decorations and fixes the house up nice for mom.
Very heartwarming.
I mean, my BIL is a great guy. But that is just not something he’d have done as a teenager.
I answered as we actually do, not as I would choose to do…
Outside decorations go up on a nice day after Halloween but not turned on until after Thanksgiving. Tree goes up week or two before Thanksgiving so black friday everything can be turned on. Outside comes down first day after Christmas its nice out which last year was March
Yeah, I probably don’t ever take the tree and outside lights down exactly on Epiphany, but I certainly unplug everything on Epiphany.
Christmas doesn’t end on December 25th. Hello, 12 days of Christmas. The 12th day of Christmas is January 6th, Epiphany, Three Kings Day. Anybody taking their decorations down before then is simply celebrating a secular shopping holiday. Please don’t call them Christmas decorations, feel free to call the holiday or seasonal decorations.
Usually set them up on the weekend following Thanksgiving.
Taken down the weekend after New Years.
Disagree.
And agree to disagree.
A celebration of the birth of Christ is just that . . . a celebration. There are no Biblical grounds that such a celebration lasts 12 days; or that it should be celebrated in any particular fashion.
Some denominations do celebrate in such a fashion, and that is fine. But implying that those who do not aren’t celebrating that event . . . let’s just say that doesn’t have a place here.
Anyone putting up decorations at all is celebrating a secular holiday, turning it all into a dick-measuring contest, which, by the way, WAS NOT part of the original birth of Jesus event, as far as scriptures tell it. Until the three wise men showed up and tried to one-up each other with the present-giving.
Almost.
The 12 Days Of Christmas are December 25 - January 5. (Count out the days!) This liturgical season is also known as Christmastide.
January 6 is Epiphany, which is NOT part of Christmastide / not one of the 12 Days of Christmas.
We’ve discussed this before, but Christmas here has nothing to do with Christianity. It’s over on the 25th with presents and turkey dinner for the family.
