Skip to main content

O Tannenbaum

The German word Tannenbaum translates to the  English language as O Christmas Tree. O Tannenbaum, or O Christmas Tree is a traditional German Christmas Carol about how ever green the trees branches are... The Christmas Tree has it's origin in Europe 500 years ago. German Settlers brought the tradition of The Christmas tree to Pennsylvania which then spread through America.
Five hundred years ago Real Christmas trees were used, but in modern day times the artificial tree has made it's appearance in homes and business world wide.  The great debate of buying a real vs fake tree has been in the spotlight lately and to set the record straight I suggest you visit the official place for answers, The National Christmas Tree Association.  Here you will find the pros and cons of the real vs fake tree, the history of the Christmas tree, a topic of Myths of Christmas Trees.
I love the smell of fresh cut pine in my house.  I place tree branches in every nook and cranny in my house.  It gives it the Holiday feel and look, unless our kitten finds it first.  This year our real tree is not decorated due to the fact our kitten thinks we put it in the living room so he could climb it at will!

I have several totes of ornaments from my childhood, my kids childhood, and ornaments that we as a family have received or bought.  A  favorite of mine is the German company Kathe Wohlfahrt.  They offer traditional German Folk ornaments and decorations. Having  a real tree in your house may incur some events such as spotting spiders, needles falling on your floor, and the wonderful fragrance of pine.  An artificial tree has a lead warning on the box, is made from PVC, is not able to be used for compost, and is not made from a renewable resource.  I am not promoting the use of real or artificial trees.  Educate yourself on what tree works best for your lifestyle. I have a real tree and an artificial tree that I bought this year to hang to ornaments on that my mother made.
I do not have a good reason I bought the artificial tree than a real tree,other than I had to put it in the basement (kitten again), and the thought of spilling water all over the place wasn't on my list of another thing to clean up. ( bad excuse, I know).
If you chose a real tree, be sure to recycle, or compost it.  Our town offers a curb side pick up of trees, check with your area for recycling of either type tree.  Zoos  may take your old tree for winter shelter of animals, shore communities use them for stabilizing sand dunes, and you can use it in your own back yard for birds to use for winter shelter.
Enjoy your Christmas Tree, real or artificial, with memories and traditions of 500 years ago.

Popular posts from this blog

See the newest trailer for NOAH with an intro from Emma Watson.

NOAH is coming soon!  To a theater near you on March 28, 2014 and until then take a look at scenes from NOAH. Emma Watson shares a fun intro to the newest trailer release of the film NOAH: Learn about the making of the film and the bible story of NOAH: Read what's being said about NOAH in the press: Geoffrey Morin who is head of communications for The American Bible Society offers an article on "NOAH".  The op-ed is entitled, “NOAH spurs debate pitting art vs. Bible” and poses the question, “How much artistic interpretation should be allowed?   Here is the article about the film  Noah  on USA Today. Noah comes to a theater near you on March 28, 2013.  To find a location near you go to NOAH  the official web site for the film. 

Giveaway of New Soft Scrub® 4-in-1 Toliet Cleaner to three lucky winners.

  Let's talk about cleaning toilets. Hmm, I'd rather not talk about that, or clean them. However, I don't want dirty toilets in our house, so I have to clean all three of them. I'd clean four or five because I really would like two downstairs bathrooms in my next house. We have one powder room on the first floor and two full baths upstairs.I'd like three full baths upstairs. Why in the world would I want to clean all that? Who knows, but having a product that can help out cleaning the three we currently have in my house is greatly appreciated. Soft Scrub ®  is honestly amazing me with their new and improved products. I've learned about them in the past few months from trying them out and writing reviews. My kitchen sink has never shined so much, the bathrooms are cleaner, and now Soft Scrub 4-in-1 Toilet Care is now here! It is new, it smells nice, and it is so easy to use. Just clip it on the side of the bowl, make sure it is in the flow of water when the...

Win an Ultimate prize pack from Betty Crocker Ultimate Meals and Mixes

So, how's the dinner time prep going? The kids are back in school, and  then after school is sports, band practice. Do you have the taxi light on top your car on? Sound familiar? I can relate. Those nights of soccer practice and games kept us moving. I am the late afternoon here on the East Coast, and glad to have my dinner thoughts together. How did I do it? The ultimate way, with new Ultimate Hamburger Helper from Betty Crocker ®, that's how. I whipped up, I'm calling it that, because it was easy to prepare and cook. I made Ultimate Hamburger Helper Three Cheese Marinara. Easy to understand directions are on the back of the box, and don't forget to cut out the Box Tops For Education Label before you toss the cardboard into your recycling bin.   How to make this warm hearty meal for your family: open a box of Ultimate Hamburger Helper Three Cheese Marinara Brown 1 pound ground beef in a skillet. I used organic ground beef. In that same skillet, add and stir in: 1 cu...