Why We Decorate (LOH #111)

We are well and truly, entering the festive season and there is no escaping it. The lights are up in the nearest town to me, poles are covered in knitted decor (which is quite cool, if I must say so). And the shops are bursting with their extra festive stock.

I can understand why kids love this time of year, the lights, the extra family time and the huge amounts of sugar they usually get to consume.

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Solstice Sun

There is such a huge build up to it as well, with the excitement mounting until it gets almost too much having to wait any longer. With everyone around you, generally in such good spirits, what's no to like, it certainly seems to (mostly) bring people together.

But it's also a very stressful time, mostly for the adults, as all the preparations are made and decorations are huge part of that. I grew up celebrating Christmas and I loved when our house got decorated. I always looked forward, to when the tree was being put up.

It felt so good to celebrate in this way and it really, made our home feel special.

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I was young, I didn't really think about all the decor that is being made and what it was being made from. I didn't think about the Trees that were being grown to be used only for a few weeks and then threw aside.

Not to mention the monoculture involved, depleting our soils.

There are ways in which you can decorate in another way. A way that will also help to spread awareness abut nature and her wonderful cycle. A natural understanding that we can share with our children, whilst also giving back a little.

If you are lucky enough to live with trees around you or near you, how about decorating and celebrating them, with gifts for the Sun and the Birds.

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I have a tradition with my children every Solstice and down through the doors, we have often invited others to come and join us. We make popcorn string, suns and personally designed bird feeders.

Feeders, that have been made from citrus skin, cut the orange in half then scoop out the segments and voila, you have a wonderful container in which you can fill with seeds for the birds.

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Then you make three holes in the skin and place some string through and hang from the closet trees. The popcorn chain, is super simple. You just thread the popcorn onto another piece if string (I like to use hemp) and hang from the trees or branches.

My kids and I, love to watch the birds come and enjoy their gifts.

We also draw shapes on cardboard boxes, which we then cut out, cover in peanut butter and then dip in seeds. Which we, once again hang from the trees or from our truck.

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Then, there are the suns that we make with recycled items, things that I gave been keeping and gathering. As we make them, we talk about the cycle of the sun. How we are approaching the shortness night of the year, after which the sun will return to our skies for longer periods of time.

We talk about how important the sun is and make our own as a offering, to welcome it's glorious return back into our lives. Celebrating our connection to the seasons and the wonderful world we live in, whilst giving something back.

This is my response to one of the questions, from the latest Ladies Of Hive Community Contest. Which asked us to write about the following ........

We've all seen our neighbors' homes and lawns beautifully decorated during the holidays. Elaborate holiday decorating, both indoors and outdoors can be either fun or a headache. What advice would you give to a first-time decorator?

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