DOWNSIZING—THE TIME HAS COME
Hi everyone. Well, I decided this is the year I’m
going to downsize my tree. I have a beautiful artificial tree in the attic that
takes three people to get down and carry down the stairs. That’s the first
problem. The second one is, I’m not getting any younger, so it takes me a
couple of days to get it decorated to my liking rather than the one day I used
to be able to do it in. This is my new tradition, starting this
year—downsizing.
But I couldn’t decide what to do. I had two smaller
trees from years’ past—a “regular” one that’s about five feet tall rather than the seven-and-a-half
foot one I’ve put up for that last several years, and I have this little
reindeer tree that was easy to decorate—but it had no lights, and I must have
lights. So, I ended up with two trees—still easier than the one giant one.
Like so many of you, I have grown children who
aren’t quite settled enough yet to be able to give them their keepsake
Christmas ornaments with a clear conscience, so I have more ornaments than I
know what to do with—especially with this smaller tree. But that’s what I
wanted for this year—smaller. Not so much. Maybe next year will be different,
but for this Christmas, this feels just right.
In my western/Civil War short story anthology A HERO
FOR CHRISTMAS, one of the stories, A NIGHT FOR MIRACLES, revolves around a
miracle on Christmas Eve. Nick Dalton, a wounded fast gun with a reputation,
seeks shelter from a blizzard with three children at Angela Bentley’s cabin.
Three children start their own Christmas tradition that night with a small tree
that night, and Nick and Angela realize that Christmas really is A NIGHT FOR
MIRACLES. The other short stories in this anthology are: SCARLET RIBBONS, MEANT
TO BE, and HOMECOMING.
Merry Christmas, everyone!
A HERO FOR CHRISTMAS
A four-story Western collection from award winning author Cheryl Pierson
A Night for Miracles ~ Widow Angela Bentley takes in injured Nick Dalton and three orphans on Christmas Eve. Angela determines to keep her distance – until the children drag in a scraggly Christmas tree.
Homecoming ~ A holiday skirmish sends Union officer, Jack Durham, on an unlikely mission for a dying Confederate enemy. Will a miracle be able to heal his heart and reunite him with his beloved?
Meant to Be ~ Robin Mallory is shocked when she is tackled by a man in a Confederate uniform. A flat tire and a coming snowstorm have stranded her in the middle of a re-enactment – or is it?
Scarlet Ribbons ~ Persuaded by a vendor, Miguel Rivera ~ El Diablo ~ makes a foolish purchase—scarlet ribbons. Will they, and a mysterious meeting, set him on a new path?
A NIGHT FOR MIRACLES When widow Angela Bentley takes in injured ex-gunhawk Nick Dalton and three orphans on Christmas Eve, she is determined only to lend a hand where needed. But when the children drag in a small, scraggly Christmas tree, Angela finds herself wanting to create a memorable holiday for them. Can these visitors become the family she longs for? For those who believe in miracles, anything is possible--even true love, in the most unlikely circumstances.
Order your copy from amazon:
Cheryl is giving away a .pdf copy of Hero for Christmas to someone who leaves a comment today. Leave your email address in your comment to be in the drawing.
I love your trees! I did the downsizing thing this year, too, and though I do miss the big'un, it has a beautiful place of pride in my daughter's living room, so I got the best of both worlds there.
ReplyDeleteGot to have that book, too--you don't need to enter me for the drawing. Amazon's my best friend these days and I'll just meander over there. :-
Merry Christmas!
Hi Liz! I'll say you DID get the best of both worlds! I love my big tree, but I realized a couple of years back that I was dreading getting it out rather than looking forward to it. This was my year to do something about it. I'm glad you still get to enjoy your big tree without having the hassle of it. Thanks so much for coming by, and I hope you enjoy A HERO FOR CHRISTMAS.
DeleteCheryl
Such cute little trees, Cheryl P! Shorts sound wonderful, too!
ReplyDeleteThank you, Taryn! I've got them all set up and barely even miss my big tree. Just a little. LOL
DeleteCheryl
We have a few small trees to go along with our big tree, and yesterday I was at Hy-vee and they had some small real trees with lights all decorated How could I say NO? I needed one for my quilt room which I plan on spending the day in finishing those last minute projects. I love your little elf tree.
ReplyDeleteYour book is on my list.
bmazur123@aol.com
Hi Mickey,
DeleteWell, I'd love to have a tree for my office, but I don't know where I'd put it! LOL Those little small real trees sound great, because you know they're going to just smell wonderful.
Cheryl
we downsized our tree last year. thanks for chance to win a copy of your book.
ReplyDeleteABreading4fun [at] gmail [dot] com
Hi Apple Blossom--well, I should have done this a couple of years back instead of putting it off. I've got you entered in the drawing!
ReplyDeleteCheryl
I love your downsizing trees. Since we now go to our children's for Christmas my hubby decorates a special tree in our front yard. At night it lights our darkened living room and during the day the birds flit around the feeders that are nearby. This is a very special tree because it came home from Colorado in our camping stuff MANY years ago. We planted it thinking it would never grow as it was only about 4 inches tall at the time. For many years we watched it grow so slowly we almost dug it up several years. Then one spring we noticed it was a brighter shade of green and about a foot taller. While it is still only about 6 foot tall it is a perfect shape and is very special to us. In fact if we ever move from this place we will see that the tree goes with us or that one of the children replant it in their yard.
ReplyDeleteI was just looking at Hero for Christmas on Amazon for my kindle this morning. Decided I needed to finish my Christmas shopping first so would love to win it! lorenzc@huntel.net
Loved hearing about your special tree
DeleteLilsis,
DeleteThat is a great story. I have a crepe myrtle that my dad gave me out of his yard back when we first bought this house. We had planted it beside the patio, but then we decided to extend the patio on out, and eventually put in a Florida room. When we extended it, my husband dug up the crepe myrtle (QUITE A JOB BY THEN!) and replanted it beside the pool. It's now probably about 12-15 feet tall and just gorgeous when it blooms. I always think of my dad when I look at it--lots of special memories there. I will put your name in the drawing for A HERO FOR CHRISTMAS!
Cheryl
Thank you for being my guest today, Cheryl. Love your darling trees.
ReplyDeleteCheryl, thank you so much for having me here today--I am enjoying your Christmas tree tour so much--I really enjoy seeing everyone else's trees and learning more about them.
DeleteHugs,
Cheryl
Great pic of all your trees. We downsized a few years ago :-)
ReplyDeleteSherry, I wish I had done that too--I feel a lot of relief this year. I didn't realize how heavily it was weighing on me.
DeleteCheryl
Your little trees are cute. I figure I'll be downsizing in a few years when both my boys are out of HS.
ReplyDeleteMarcy
bmndshuler(at)hotmail(dot)com
Thanks, Marcy--they were sure a lot easier to do. Both of my kids have their own places now, and my daughter does a ton of decorating for the place where she works, so she's not so much into that anymore HERE. LOL Plus, at this stage, it's hard to find a time when everyone can meet to decorate the tree. This is a lot better.
DeleteCheryl
I started cheating a few years ago & bought a pre-decorated & lighted tree. It is six feet tall, beautifully decorated & lighted, & drops down nicely into a box with a handle. Unfortunately, my kitties like to play with the tree & find it fascinating to crawl under the tree and make it spin! Therefore, unless the grandkids are coming for Christmas, which they do not do much these days, we are unable to have a tree at all. Enjoy your precious little trees, my friend, they are adorable! Love ya,
ReplyDeleteJulie Jackson Wilcox
Carter_julie@sbcglobal.net
Oh, Julie, I wish I had something like that! LOL I knew a woman once who kept her tree in the garage, all decorated with the lights on, etc. She put it in the corner and covered it with trash bags. It made me wish I had room in MY garage to do the same thing! LOL We used to have a cat that would climb the tree while we were gone to work. We'd come home and the entire tree would be laying on its side. He stopped doing it as he got older. Thanks for coming by, and I've gotcha entered in the drawing!
DeleteHugs,
Cheryl
if I kept a tree in my garage it would smell like varnish and look like something the cat dragged in.
DeleteThank you for the invite to your post. I have just returned from an Hawaiian cruise.
ReplyDeleteI can totally get on board with downsizing! At my office I have a lovely predecorated tree that pops out of the box and pulls up so easily. The last two years we have done minimal decorations at home and let our children decorate at their houses instead. :-)
A Hero for Christmas sounds like a lovely collection.
Thanks Cheryl and Cheryl. May you both have a blessed Christmas with your families.