Disclosure: This dining room Christmas tree post is sponsored by Balsam Hill.  As always, all opinions shared are honest and my own. Several years ago, I pitched my artificial Christmas tree, purchased at a 75% off after-Christmas discount.  It clearly looked artificial and shed worse than a long-haired cat.  I was tired of storing it and wanted to give live trees a try.  I hadn’t had a live tree since I was a child.  We adopted two Siamese cats when I was in 2nd grade and their first Christmas in our home, they climbed the live tree and drank the water in the stand, resulting in two kittens with belly aches from the sap.  From that point on, we had a fake tree and I carried that tradition into adulthood. I love live trees, but I have learned the downsides.  I had a few trees dry out before Christmas, so I

I owe some of you an apology.  For the past few years, I have shared tips on decorating a home with fresh greens at Christmas and doled out all sorts of advice on the subject.  When I would receive questions about keeping the greens fresh, I would answer that they just need to be put it in place and left alone.  It will slowly dry, but it will look nice for a few weeks. Okay, that was when I had hot-water heat.  Now that I have forced air, I have been introduced to the disappointment experienced when you pay good money for fresh garlands, sprigs, and swags only to have them dry to a complete crisp long before Christmas arrived. Last year, an advent wreath I made only lasted about two days… Oh, it looked so pale and droopy and sad.  The garland on the stair banister required a 30-minute vacuuming

My Oma was an avid collector.  It was just in her nature and she didn’t fight it.  After she passed away, it was almost overwhelming dealing with all of the stuff.  Thousands of swizzle sticks and postcards, and five gallon buckets in a row, filled to the brim with seashells collected on the North Carolina shore over the years.  She collected cookbooks, Royal Copenhagen Christmas plates, campaign buttons, silver dollars and dimes, souvenir spoons, alabaster fruit, Stieff Repousse silverware and serving pieces, and Hummels.  That list maybe scratches the surface. She also collected Wallace Sleigh Bells. She bought one every year from the time they started making them in 1971.  As we were sorting through her attic, we came across the sleigh bells and divided them between her children and grandchildren, so I brought home four of them.  I selected my birth year, Jeff’s birth year, and two random years

Again, I couldn’t help myself. Once our porch was stripped of the pumpkins that were past their prime and the frost-bitten topiaries, it looks a little sad.  And it certainly doesn’t help that we don’t have one evergreen plant or bush in the front gardens.  Everything is brown and leafless, just emphasizing the ugly side of winter and the lack of attention we’ve paid to the landscaping. The garden beds will have to wait until spring, but I felt like some garlands and lights would do a lot to dress things up for Christmas. I bought two mixed live garlands to hang around the front door and front window and a pair of potted evergreens with some clipped live greens tucked in around them.  I also dug some indoor-outdoor string lights from my Christmas bins to wrap around the greenery. To hang the light-wrapped garlands, I tapped a large nail