This is a wreath I made years ago when we lived in Palm Springs. It’s on our front gate. This week, I’m decorating my tree, hanging wreaths and having fun getting ready for my kids and DIL’s visit.
The wreath was placed on our big wooden gates when we lived in Palm Springs.
I noticed a few decorations on my daily walk. Here they are:
I’m not sure if these are mice or polar bears. Any guesses?
I love saguaros with Santa hats.
They look good on Beavergtail cacti too.
I got this Rockin’ Santa from Target in 1999. He’s a joy to bring out each Christmas season. He dances to Brenda Lee’s “Rockin Around the Christmas Tree.”
Our first Christmas in Arizona was about a week after we moved. I didn’t decorate. The next year we rented a house in Santa Barbara for our family. The year after that, we stayed in our old Palm Springs neighborhood. Needless to say, I didn’t put up a tree at home. My Rockin’ Santa was the extent of my decorations, plus the wreath on the gate.
I decided to put up the tree this year because the kids are coming. But I couldn’t find my Christmas box containing our married life of ornaments. I looked high and low. I emptied out the guest room closet. I searched the garage which has nice storage cupboards. I looked everywhere.
It hurt my heart that I no longer had our eclectic collection of ornaments that included ones made by my kids in second, third and fourth grades. I had ornaments given as gifts through the decades from my mom and friends. Nothing matched but it all worked and was special to us.
I was relieved to find our Christmas stockings safely tucked away in my bin of gift wrap. My friend in Santa Barbara made them for us, plus I still have the stocking my grandmother knitted for my first Christmas!
Somehow our Christmas ornaments didn’t make the move from Palm Springs to Arizona. The wreaths were stored in the same spot as the Christmas box, which is odd.
A strange thing happened during our move. The movers’ truck wasn’t big enough. They had to rent a separate U-Haul and the nearest one available was in San Diego. That was due to everyone moving out of California during COVID. People were not moving into the state, so U-Hauls were in short supply.
We left for Arizona and the movers promised to catch up with us the next day. We left before the movers had everything packed. Good thing we bought all the furniture in the casita — so we didn’t have to sleep on the floor!
Do you decorate for holidays? Do you keep it to a minimum or do you go all out?
Oh my goodness! The cactus with a beret? With a pom pom on top? I’m smiling! 🥰🎄🥰
I can’t help but smile every time I walk by! 😊
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😊🙌😊
Wow ! Did the second U-Haul not ever show up ? Sorry about your ornaments . 😕 I like the cacti with hats and I think those are polar bears. 😊
The U-Haul and moving truck showed up the next day, but I’ve been missing a few boxes. I may buy some Santa hats because they will save cactus if it freezes.
Minimal decorations. Small tree a few doodads and done
I’m usually minimal too.
I’ve gradually slowed down then stopped putting things out at all. I remember the years of 2 Christmas trees and lots of decor when the kids were small. Now I have no storage space that isn’t full of other things so short of leaving Christmas decor up all year (nope) I just hang a banner on the door and call it good. Oh, and candles- seasonal candles burning with the scents associated with Christmas and winter.
I haven’t decorated in four years, so I agree with you. Except for my wreath and Rockin Santa. I had an acquaintance in Palm Springs who put up 20 trees all with themes. I never could get that!
I’m hoping the decoration in question are polar bears … but they sure look like Christmas mice! Ha ha, yes, we seem to lose a box of two each year. Magically though the number of boxes seems to triple in size each year. One of life’s mysteries!
When I took the photo I thought they were polar bears. When I posted the photo they look like mice! Strange how something like a big box of ornaments can go missing!
Our outdoor lights went missing this year. My wife couldn’t figure out where they had gone. We finally found them in a complete different part of our basement. When our son was home this summer, he moved some boxes around. He ended up placing three Xmas boxes with his things from high school and college. It’s only by luck that I found it! I’m still not sure it wasn’t his way to play a joke on us. Ha ha!
That’s funny if it was on purpose! Come to think of it, our outdoor lights didn’t make it either. We used to hang white icicle lights along our French doors. I really think it was our movers. A woman came out to our house to make an estimate of what size truck they’d need and give us a price. Then a few weeks later the movers came and our stuff didn’t fit. We also had a storage unit that I showed the woman. We weren’t there to see if they packed and moved everything. Obviously, they didn’t!
Oh that’s a such a shame! And as far as whether it was done on purpose or not, we wonder. Our son won’t be home this year for Christmas. I could see him playing tricks on us … he made a big deal too saying that the area he created was just stuff he brought back home. He’ll get his when he comes back home. 😂😂🤪🤪
Ha! If he said it was just his stuff it sounds mighty suspicious!
I’m so sorry about your Christmas ornaments. We have a few cacti with Santa hats around here too… always makes me smile. Funny, I had heard about lots of people leaving California during the pandemic but we are still way too crowded so many must have moved back. 🙂
The cacti with Santa hats are fun. When there was such a difference in price in U-Hauls depending on if you were leaving or going to California, it made sense. Our first social outing in our neighborhood was a couple who invited all the newbies for a party. There were six or seven couple and we all moved from California.
Beautiful decorations! You are all set. I sent some Frango Mints to my sister, she was so happy.
Thank you! I went to Target and bought gold and red ornaments. It was a box with lots of different textures, sparkles and shapes. It looks pretty good. I’m glad your sister liked the Frango Mints!
I think polar bears.🙂 I decorated a small pine at the bottom of the drive and put up our artificial tree with our eclectic ornaments. Such a bummer about yours going missing! Also a wreath on the door and stockings on the fireplace. A few knick knacks. All our gifts have to fit in the stockings this year. We don’t have lights outside on the house due to hubby’s injuries from his bike accident. I miss them, but no way I’m hanging lights three stories above the ground!
I’m wavering between mice and polar bears. We have a medium sized fake tree and I bought new ornaments from Target. Only a few houses in our neighborhood do lights. Our lights didn’t make it to Arizona either, so that’s a pass. No way should you hang lights three stories above the ground. I hope your husband feels better.
I think they are polar bears. Love the cactii with santa hats. Clever.
I’m sorry about your ornaments, Elizabeth! Dang that must have been hard to move during Covid!
Love that you are going to have your kids home this Christmas!
I may have to ask my neighbors. Would they be insulted? The movers underestimated how much truck space we needed. I wonder if they still didn’t have enough with the U-Haul? We were in Arizona for 24 hours before they arrived. We are so excited to spend Christmas together with our family.
The wreath is beautiful and I hope that your tree looks magnificent despite getting all new ornaments. Happy holidays dear friend
Thank you. Yes, it all looks pretty good.
You’re very welcome 🎄
😊