Christmas in July (April, May, June, etc.)

By Ramona Pursley

During the holidays our family has two Christmas trees in our home. One is in the entryway by the front door and the other is a smaller one in a corner of the dining room, which is the kids’ tree. The tree is artificial, pre-lit and four feet tall. The kids usually choose a theme and decorate it themselves every year. We usually take both trees down right after New Years Day.

This year, the kids were very sad to have to take down their tree.

We gave it some thought and collectively came up with an idea. For this year, we decided to keep the tree up and decorate it for any holiday or birthday that comes up throughout the year.

First up was Valentines Day. In order to keep it inexpensive and creative, we went to the dollar store and got some decorations. They carry so many cute things for special holidays and parties. Next we went to a fabric store and bought a couple of yards of inexpensive Valentine-themed fabric. My daughter’s nanny, who is very skilled with our sewing machine, created a beautiful tree skirt to add to our holiday tree.

The end result was a little tree that was festive and a delight to look at. Next was my daughter Sophie’s 13th birthday. She was able to pick out her fabric for the tree skirt and decorated the tree with her favorite things such as silk flowers, little unicorn miniatures, butterflies and ballerinas. We also hand made some decorations with tulle and foam. The tree topper was a foam birthday crown. On the morning of her birthday, we placed her birthday gifts under the tree. It was just perfect.

As I write this, I am looking at our St. Patrick’s Day tree. We found some glittery shamrock garland and other shamrock decorations. The tree skirt is white with a shamrock pattern, green trim and is shaped like a four leaf clover.

The possibilities are endless and the kids really enjoy coming up with ideas for a theme and decorations. We bought some plastic shoeboxes to label and store the decorations for future use.

We have decided that each family member can choose the theme for their birthday. Together we will come up with ideas for the other holidays throughout the year such as Easter, Mothers Day, Fathers Day, Fourth of July etc. Some decorations we can buy and others we will make.

During these times of sometimes overwhelmingly busy schedules, it is nice to be able to slow down if only for short time and do something fun and creative together. We plug it in every evening and enjoy the festive lights and decorations. We look forward to the upcoming special day or holiday and the endless possibilities our little “Holiday Tree” brings.