Christmas Trees are an Important Part of Christmas

Many people don’t believe in a Christmas without a Christmas tree. This would be as difficult for some as a Christmas without letters to Santa. After all, the two are tied together. Children write letters to Santa Claus so they can assured they will not be forgotten at Christmas time. Their goal is usually to insure that Santa will leave a wonderful package for them. While it's true that some kids receive a package from Santa in the mail, most look forward to what is left under the Christmas tree. However, those special letters from Santa are magical reminders that Santa Claus is real and that they really can get the things they want for Christmas. And not surprisingly, this all starts with a beautiful Christmas tree.

During the Christmas festivities choosing the perfect Christmas tree is one of the family traditions that kids look forward to. First you need to decide if you want a real or artificial Christmas tree and also understand the pros and cons associated with each.

Many people prefer to buy real Christmas trees. The reasons are varied, but basically, these individuals say that only a real tree can give the authentic ‘feel’ to the holiday. They will mention that the smell of Christmas fills the home when a real Christmas tree is used as the center piece of the decorations. But also, they will tell you that using real Christmas trees is kinder to the environment.

There are different beliefs about the first Christmas tree but we don’t exactly know who started the tradition. In due time the tradition of decorating Christmas trees started and new decorations and traditions evolved. Over the years various groups and even different families came up with their own traditions and decorating styles and that resulted in personalization of holiday adornments.

People started using artificial Christmas trees at the beginning of the 18th century and from then on the tradition of buying artificial Christmas trees continued. You have an array of choices to select from as a wide range of the different artificial Christmas trees are available nowadays. A quick search through some of the online stores will reveal that there are several different styles , shapes and colors of trees available.

The real pros and cons of using the real Christmas trees and the Artificial ones vary as different people have different opinions on them as they believe that by picking one or the other you are destroying the environment or are dishonoring the spirit of Christmas.

Artificial trees have increased in popularity as the manufactures design them more like real trees and they are also easier to assemble. One of the greatest advantages of these artificial trees is that they can be easily assembled. Plus the artificial trees can be dismantled and stored for next Christmas quite conveniently and can again be re-used from year to year. The fact that an artificial tree can be re-used means you will save money. And, since Christmas is an expensive time of year, saving money is a good thing.

But the biggest disadvantage of the artificial Christmas trees is that they are made of non renewable petroleum and if accidentally burnt they start to release toxic fumes which will spoil the environment. Plus the artificial trees are not recyclable and so they end up in landfills and stay there for a long time damaging the environment in the process.

Not only do real Christmas trees smell wonderful, but the shopping experience for them can be lots of fun for the entire family. Plus, the real Christmas trees are renewable sources and there are many Christmas tree farms that grow Christmases trees from year to year. But the real Christmas trees need to be maintained and watered regularly and you will also need to clean up the pine needles that fall from the tree. Additionally, at times, at least for some people, these pine trees can also trigger allergies.

Thinking Of Doing Some Online Christmas Shopping This Year?

When most people think about going Christmas shopping they think of checkout lanes that are too long, stores that are packed, crowded parking lots and a stressful experience. But this kind of joy can only be experienced after hastily preparing for the shopping extravaganza and fighting traffic to get to the shopping mall of choice. For a lot of people this is what Christmas shopping is all about and they would not have it any other way.

For other people, people like me, who do not want to deal with all of that, there is an excellent alternative for your holiday shopping this year. Online shopping is an easy and simple way to shop; you can visit lots of stores in just a matter of minutes. You may be able to save a little bit of money in the process, online stores just like regular stores often have big sales during the holidays and many even offer free shipping. Another way to save is to visit some of the online coupon websites. You can usually find a coupon code for virtually any store or product.

One of the most important things to remember is to order early enough to have the gift delivered to the person before Christmas. This is important because you want your gift to be sent on time with no rushed delivery charge. The difference in shipping costs can be huge. Before you go through with your order check the stores shipping prices, some stores have high shipping. You don’t want to spend a lot of the money you saved by shopping online just trying to get all your presents shipped to you.

The only problem that I’ve had occur is that some items look a little different online than in person. Be sure you know what you are buying - look at the item carefully and be sure that is exactly what you want. That’s another good thing about shopping online; you can quickly do a search to learn more about any product that interests you – before you spend your money! You might also want to check that the store has a return Policy, just in case you need to return something.

The last thing to remember is to always choose a company that has a good reputation or one that you have bought from before. You do not want to experiment with a new store around the holiday season; there could be unexpected delays because of bad business practice.

Just to put things in perspective, online shopping is the future. It’s the quickest most convenient way to shop you; don’t even have to leave your house and anything that makes life less stressful is always good, especially around the holidays.

Online shopping has gained in popularity over the past five years and there is no reason to believe that this popularity will not continue to grow, year after year. Get a jump on things and start shopping online now – you’ll save time, money, and stress.

Parenthood Changes Christmas

Are you a parent with young children and just realized that Christmas is coming soon? Have you ever thought about how much Christmas changes every year now that you have kids? When you were younger you thought about the things that you wanted for yourself but now that you have kids you worry about them and their wants and needs. Your only concern is making Christmas special for them. Christmas becomes more stressful for you because they depend on you for their Christmas joy. You want their Christmas to be as wonderful as yours was as a child, or even better.

Every year your child is a year older, wiser and smarter so you are trying hard to keep up with them. Being a parent with young children affects the way you decorate your home, shop and celebrate for the Christmas season. Now that you have children you could start your own family traditions with them. Or carry them on from when you were a child. Something that you do every year with your family, something they will soon look forward to every year.

One of our family traditions is sitting around the table and helping the children write their letters to Santa and then helping them mail those letters off to the North Pole. We also spend time doing Christmas craft projects and making decorations.

Decorating your home can actually be more fun now that you have kids. Don't be afraid to let your kids make a mess and get dirty. You will never get a better gift than a handmade gift from your child. You can have them make ornaments to put on the tree and Christmas cards to give to the family. You will probably be able to use the decorations every year and it will be a memory that you and your child have together. You could even make this a tradition that the kids will love.

Shopping is a lot more difficult now and since you are shopping for the kids you will have to find a babysitter for them. Online shopping is more convenient and you can do it when the kids go to bed. You can also have your gifts delivered to your door so you do not even have to leave the house.

When your kids are young it's a good time to teach them the meaning of Christmas - that it is not about the material things that they may get but that Christmas is about giving rather than receiving, and being there for your family and friends.