Christmas lights

We've always put up our Christmas tree and lights on the day after Thanksgiving, in part because it's a day off with nothing else to occupy it. And since we don't use a real tree (doesn't feel right to kill an evergreen as part of a celebration which only uses an evergreen because of its survival through the winter) there's no compelling reason to wait until later.

This year, now that I have my wonderful folding ladder, my plan for the outdoor lights is something I've always wanted to try, putting them along the underside of the porch. The peak of the porch is about 14-16' off the ground so I have never before had a way to get all the way up there. (I'm still not 100% sure I'll be able to get up there well enough to put in a hook.) If it works, I think it'll be a lot nicer than the line around the garage door I've done previous years. Still pretty simple, we're not the type to do those overwrought, complex Christmas lights. Just enough to spice the house up.

We also have a new tree this year. Our old one has seen fifteen Christmases and has been ratty and worn for a while now, but it kept not being the right year, financially, to buy a new one. The new one should be easier to assemble, and has some lights built-in, so hopefully we'll be able to get more quickly to our annual ornament tradition.