It’s nearing the dawn of October, 2022. The holiday season is just around the corner... or IS IT?
For some the holiday season beings Thanksgiving weekend. But for ME, the holiday season begins around Mid-September. If I wait until November to start thinking about the holidays, I’ve missed the boat completely. Planning meetings, rehearsals, organizing, booking, and promoting The Tinseltone Carolers begin long before many people even begin to thing of the holidays.
I LOVE holiday decorations. As a child, I would marvel at the elaborate Christmas decor my Great Aunt Claudia and Great Uncle Carl would set up , not only in their home, but also in their front yard. Their front yard, side yard, back yard, driveway, and the field out back! Up in the trees, Down on the ground. Plywood cutouts painted like angles. Life-sized Manger Scenes. Plastic Santa Claus figures, lit from within. Dazzling lighted spheres my Aunt Lee would make from strings of lights, clear plastic cups, and a glue gun. She’d make dozens of these and would have them hanging from the pecan trees that adorned the property. Later in life, Aunt Lee lost her eyesight, but STILL managed to put up every single light and figure, which they proudly proclaimed on a sign in the front yard, for guests to see as they drove through the display.
As her children and grandchildren became adults and built their own homes in the surrounding town, they carried on the tradition. A major highway passed right through the center of town, so people would come from miles around to see their amazing Christmas lights.
A holiday tradition in my family was for my Mother and I to drive around Christmas Eve to “see the lights” after our family Christmas Eve celebration, but before we settle down for a “long Winter’s nap” to wait for Santa to arrive. I always wanted to decorate like they did, but hour house was set back too far from the highway for any outdoor decorations or lights to be seen. So, I told myself, “when I grow up, I’m going to decorate my home just like Uncle Carl and Aunt Lee”… and believe me I DO.
Sadly, the highway route changed when it became a 4 lane freeway, and people stopped driving through the small town, so the elaborate holiday displays are a thing of the past. Aunt Lee and Uncle Carl are no longer with us, but at our house we carry on the tradition. We don’t just decorate for Christmas, but for Halloween as well. Animated lights, inflatable figures, projections, lasers. We live in a wonderful neighborhood, full of families with children. They stop as they walk by on their evening stroll to enjoy our display. I see the children smiling and laughing, and think back to my childhood when I would visit Uncle Carl and Aunt Lee. We’re blessed to live in a neighborhood where many of the houses join in the fun. A couple of years ago, a family member commented on a photo I posted of our display saying "You're house looks about like your Uncle Carl and Aunt Lee's!" I've never been paid a higher compliment.
So, because the planning and rehearsals for Tinseltones by Tomlinson begins in September, if we don’t get an early start on our decorations for Halloween, they might not get done. So, why risk it?? This year, the Halloween Decor and Lights went up the second week in September. We may have been the first to start, but we were quickly joined by other homes on our street. At this point, the holiday season in Boulevard Heights is in full swing. As I drove home last night, I was thrilled to see so many houses in the neighborhood decorated for Halloween. Hopefully the enthusiasm will carry over through the rest of the Holiday Season.
For us, on November 1st, with the flip of a switch to change up the lighting scheme, and the swapping out of a few inflatables, the spooky-ookey yard display with transform into a winter wonderland for the rest of the holidays.
Some complain that it’s too early for decorations, but I say, if you enjoy it (and I do), and it brings join to others (and it does), why wait? It’s never too early to bring a little joy into the lives of your fellow man. It's definitely not too early to start planning your holiday entertainment. Request a quote today to book The Tinseltone Carolers for your holiday event!
