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My husband and I always give each other special ornaments so that's the majority of what goes on our tree. Then we have random red and green ornaments. But my tree topper is my favorite thing ever. It's a Victorian Minnie Mouse Angel. :)

It's not even December but I'm already feeling desperate to get everything up because while we were gone for Thanksgiving, most of the neighbors decorated. We don't put a whole lot outside--white lights and candy cane rope lights and peppermint sidewalk decorations. It's the inside I'm worried about because we've amassed so many ornaments over the years.

With my family we follow an old French tradition. Tree is put up for the last week of Advent but left undecorated. On Christmas eve we decorate the tree with lights and ornaments before going to mid-night Mass. Gifts are placed under the tree but not distributed until Petit Noel (King's Day). Tree is left in place at least through Twelfth Night.

At my place I have a sort of Charlie Brown tree, more like a leafless branch, and suspended from the branch I have one .45 ACP bullet. "A cartridge in a bare tree"!

Fight the urge! Be countercultural! http://forum.ship-of-fools.com/UBB-n...ot_twoface.gif

I could be wildly unique and at least wait until December to do the outside.

^^ Unless you do it today, you have waited until December!

My tree is a "family tree". My mom and I have both given my kids ornaments through the years and we have also bought a lot of them on vacations. They have sentimental value and meaning. The kids have made a lot of ornaments too. We each have a bag of our own ornaments. Admittedly, most of mine are squirrels or red, buff and green (or are actual Alpha Gam ornaments). I fill in around those ornaments with a few bows (red) and some antique bulbs from my mom (which were from her mom/my grandma originally). Almost every ornament is meaningful to us. I think of it as a tree of love :)

I usually decorate over Thanksgiving weekend but with school demands this year, it isn't done yet. We are going to try to get the tree up tonight if we can. In addition to the tree, I have a beautiful lighted garland for the mantel, Santa Bears (yes, I'm showing my age) that sit on the hearth, numerous Christmas music boxes that go in the curio cabinet and on shelves around the house. I have all kinds of things like that, for the shadowbox in the kitchen and some things for the bathroom even. I love Christmas decorations :) We have an entry table where we set up the Nativity scene and a special shelf for a Christmas village that my aunt gave me. Love it all

Outside, I put lights on the gutters and shrubs and have two lighted spiral trees and lighted gifts that go under them. I am having all of my shrubs cut down on December 9th though, and need to have the gutters cleaned right after that so I don't know when that will happen this year, if at all :(

I don't have a tree anymore as I have these lovely creatures I adopted called cats, and they'd knock it down and destroy my ornaments and the rest of the house in the process. Sometimes we'd get the tree right after Thanksgiving and decorate it, other times we'd wait and decorate it later.

One thing on which I will never waiver, is that the Nativity Scene/Creche will be displayed appropriately and in order. The animals and the stable/manger can be present before Christmas Eve, but all other individuals don't arrive until their specified time, with the Three Kings/Wise Men/Magi joining the scene on Epiphany.

I'm probably just going to weave some paper heart baskets and put some cookies in them for Santa Lucia to give to people.