Christmas morning is full of excitement, especially if you have young children who will be up at the crack of dawn looking for signs of Santa Claus. It can be chaos and a very early wake up call, if you don't have a plan or a routine set out before.

My Mother always did two things which helped make our Christmas morning a little easier on the grown ups and yet still exciting and wonderful for the children. First, on Christmas Eve we were allowed to open one present. She would pick which one it would be for each of us, four siblings. It didn't occur to me until much later in life that she knew just which presents she was giving us. For the first dozen or so years I was always surprised that the four gifts she seemed to pick randomly from the pile were always new nightgowns or pajamas.

So we would wear our new night clothes to bed and already have the fun of opening a present and having something new. I think that helped spread the excitement out a bit and take off some of the edge from the suspense and wound up feeling we all had.

The second smart thing she always did was to have a rule that the parents could not be woken up until they either go themselves up or it was at least 7:30 AM. We had to be even quieter when my Grandparents and Aunt and Uncle were visiting. My Grandmother would wake up if a pin dropped. It wasn't so hard being quiet though.

We were allowed to open our Christmas stockings without waiting for the adults. Those would have assorted small things to keep us busy. Little toys, a new book, when we were younger and then useful things, like a new hair brush, lip balm, or nice smelling soap, as we grew older. Sometimes the stocking gifts were reminders to brush our teeth and hair while we waited for everyone else to get up.

The smartest thing she put in the stocking were edible, not candy. There would be nuts to crack, granola bars and other snacks. The best thing of all (for me) was the Christmas orange which was always at the bottom toe of the Christmas stocking. Usually there were a few of them. Christmas is still about the taste of oranges for me. I buy them for myself every Christmas holiday.

We didn't have a television in the room with the Christmas stockings and the tree. So there would be no one watching TV on Christmas morning. But, we would have the radio and we could put the Christmas music on whichever radio stations were playing it. Most of them would be on Christmas morning of course. The radio had to be pretty quiet but we liked listening to all the same old Christmas tunes and they were just fine as background or (when a favourite came on) it could be turned up if we closed the door to keep it from waking up Grandmother.

The food and small gifts would keep us busy until parents and guests were starting to stir. We would sit in the room with the Christmas tree, still lit from Christmas Eve. But, we never opened anything. My brother and one of my sisters would be sorting out presents, getting them in piles, ready to open everything. There would be some guessing, trying to decide what everything was. Some were obvious and some a mystery.

Once the adults were up, all of us in pajamas with hair every which way (but we did wash - the hair just seemed less important), we would help get breakfast started. Four young people can get things moving along quickly when they really have the spirit of co-operation. Breakfast was not rushed. We talked, we made plans for the day. it was a good way to move things along and yet calm down the rush to open gifts. Everyone was mellow, well fed and feeling comfortable by the time we actually did go back out to the room with the Christmas tree and all the gifts, lights and shiny things.

Presents were opened in some order, decided as we went along mainly. But, there were no more than two or three being opened at once. The adults were included. I think it was a very big help that the adults had gifts from the children too. We would happily stop opening gifts of our own so we could see how the adults reacted to the gifts we had wrapped up for them. Christmas was about giving for us. I still love Christmas shopping and finding just the right gift for everyone on my list.

After the presents were opened we cleaned up all the wrappings. I liked to stick the ribbons and bow in our hair for my sisters and I. We would wear them until the stickiness faded and then they would be tided up too. After things were sorted out around the Christmas tree the adults would make coffee and have a card game. My brother and I would play too, if there were spots open for another player.

That would be our Christmas morning. The rest of the day would come along, no real plan. There would be time for playing in the snow, or just taking a walk outside. It's a shame there usually isn't much snow for Christmas any more. I miss the heaps of snow at Christmas.

Why isn't there a Halloween tree? I love the Christmas tree, it's one of my favourite Christmas things. So, why not a tree just for Halloween?

I think it would be a great way to decorate for Halloween. the tree could be a real big size, the sort to stand in the room at Christmas, or the size of a centrepiece which you could sit on the table. You could also have the tree in the doorway for trick-or-treaters to see. I love to have my tree sitting in the middle of the room because it shows up in the window to everyone outside.

What kind of tree would you like for Halloween?

The tree could be decorated with humour, with spookiness or you may be Pagan and want a spiritual theme. Each style would have different decorations/ ornaments and even a different style of tree.

A traditional tree would be something natural looking, something you could see outside your window but with extras all on one tree. Most likely the tree would be bare branches, due to the season of Autumn when trees are loosing their leaves. On the bare branches you could have birds, crows and ravens being great and traditional choices. Add little jack-o-lanterns as ornaments.

A creepy tree could have a bloodier look with zombies, ghouls, demons and body parts. Anything gross, horrifying and gruesome which you can fit onto the tree would work for a really frightening Halloween tree.

Trees could have a funny theme with googly eyes. You could also use decorations from other holidays and give them a Halloween make over. Like turning Santa Claus into a vampire, the Easter bunny into a skeleton and a leprechaun into a rabid zombie.

I'd put lights on the tree too. Halloween colours would be orange and black but the black wouldn't show very much. You could switch it out to orange and red for a scarier look or orange and white for a prettier tree.

Last of all - a tree topper. This tree doesn't have one but you could easily add something.

Any of these trees from Amazon could be great as a Halloween tree. Have fun adding your own finishing touches to give the Halloween tree your personal touch.

Some day there will be a traditional Halloween tree. The idea just has to catch on. Meanwhile I found four which you can choose from on Amazon. Which would you pick? Each has it's own style. I'd like one tree with something from each of these. Of them all, I think I would choose the one with the curved, Gothic-looking branches. I like that touch of romance and traditional in mostly everything. I'm not the sort to enjoy horror in my Halloween.

L. Frank Baum wrote a lot more than the 'Wizard of Oz' series of stories. One of his books is 'The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus'. He later wrote a short story, 'A Kidnapped Santa Claus'. See more about L. Frank Baum and his wide range of books on Wikipedia: L. Frank Baum.

This book is about Santa Claus, from his birth to growing up and how he became Santa Claus. L. Frank Baum wrote a book explaining all the Santa Claus traditions, why Santa gives presents, how he started using the reindeers and where the elves came in. For every child who has wondered about Santa Claus, this book gives them answers and pulls together so many other traditions and legends of the great jolly man in the red suit.

My family had a vintage copy of the first edition of this book. The cover was very red. If you picked up the book it would leave your fingers stained red, even after all the years we had the book on our shelves. This is why I never really read it I think. We had the book from my Mother's family. It was one of two books she saved from a house which was demolished to make room for a McDonald's restaurant in the town of Woodstock, Ontario (many years ago).

Sadly, the book ended it's days stored in the basement after yet another move to yet another house with our family. A hot water tank burst, flooded the basement and was not noticed right away. So many things stored in the basement then were left standing in water. One of the books in the most ruined box was the L. Frank Baum book, 'The Life and Adventures of Santa Claus'. The insurance company paid us the value of the book, and some other things, but we have never really tried to replace the book. Some things are more than just objects. Replacing the object does not also replace the history and the feelings for it. So our messy old red book is gone.

It would be lovely to read the book. I think about it each Christmas. But, it's one of those things that gets pushed down on my to-do list as I keep adding more and more to be done first.

Dear Santa,

I need a new Christmas tree this year. I gave my old tree to my nephew. I thought he would be happy to have a Christmas tree of his own. It's his first year of living on his own, so far away from his family, attending university. Do you remember that tree, Santa? It was the first Christmas tree I ever bought for myself when I had a place of my own. The store I bought it from doesn't even exist now. I kept the original box, packed the tree up carefully each year. Until the divorce and then I didn't put up a tree for a long time.

But, divorce doesn't last forever and yes, I did buy myself a new Christmas tree, a fancy one! A celebration tree! I picked it out after Christmas so I could get a huge, expensive tree for just $40 on sale. I couldn't take it home on the bus, it was just too bulky and heavy. But, even with the taxi fare I still didn't pay the full amount the tree had been selling for. Practical even as I splurged on that tree. It was tall, lots of branches for all my ornaments. I loved the branches too, much nicer than my old tree (as much as I still liked it too). Still, the old tree did not come pre-lit! What a luxury that was. Just get the right plugs in the right places and there it was... all lit up and even a dimmer switch. What a glorious tree it was. Until the top of the three sections disappeared and I felt too discouraged to put it up that way.

This year, already November, Santa Claus, I gave away my old tree out of love and I can't put up the broken tree because it hurts my heart. Have you got a new Christmas tree in your Santa sack for me? Could you send it early, pretty soon in fact? I've got all the decorations out from the garage and they look forlorn sitting out without a tree to decorate.

It must be an artificial tree. I can't even remember ever having anything else since I was a kid and my brother was allergic to real trees. I'd like a tree that will be a little easier to store away, probably about 4 feet tall so I can get it inside a storage tote to keep the dust and mice away from it while it's in the rafters of the garage most of the year. I'd like something pretty. A pre-lit tree again for sure. I found the loveliest tree online (so far) but it's too far out of my budget to consider.

I know you must be crazy busy as December gets closer, but if you can, help me find that perfect little tree so I can put one up again this year. I need my Christmas spirit as much as everyone else.

Take care of yourself,

Me.

Note: This is not written to request anyone send me a tree. I've narrowed it down to a couple from stores in the area. I will have the tree ready to set up by the middle of this week. Thank you to anyone who would consider being charitable, but I'm just fine and I like being independent.

Should you get a Real Tree or a Fake Tree?

You may not have asthma and/ or allergies in your family, this is the most practical reason for having an artificial Christmas tree, to me. You may have animals in your home and want to keep them from treating a real tree like a.... real tree. Or, you may just not like throwing away a real tree after Christmas. If you have enough garden or yard space you can compost the tree but it's not going to compost quickly and it will change the garden soil condition - good for some plants and not so good for others.

In the end, consider a fake tree because they don't shed needles, don't need to be replaced each year and you leave the real trees out there to keep on growing and producing oxygen.

• Flickr: Christmas Tree Carcasses
• Flickr: Christmas Trees Discarded

Modern Artificial Trees are Beautiful Too

There are so many options for the modern artificial Christmas tree, I wonder why people keep cutting down real trees. It is especially sad to see all those real trees thrown out in the trash such a short time later.

My favourite thing about family holidays has always been the family getting together and baking. Most holidays we made pies, bread/ rolls and the odd new-fangled concept which seemed to always work out, some how. Those days are a bit lost now as we move from the old generation into the new. But, I still like holiday baking and Halloween is one of my favourite three holidays. I like these gingerbread men because they bring something new to an old Christmas tradition and something new to Halloween. Halloween gingerbread men are a good combination. Plus, tasty treats too.

Of course, most of these are based on the zombie idea. It's so trendy these days with zombie walks popping up in so many places. Gingerbread men (gingerbread people) in the zombie style tend to come with parts missing, gore and so on. Of course, you could just eat the odd leg - but that's a bit too much like double dipping. Frowned upon.

Then there's the skeleton gingerbread guy. Will you pick out the bones first or risk just crunching them between your teeth, in real gruesome Halloween style?

Why not continue on with all the standard Halloween characters in gingerbread, the ghost, the witch, the vampire, the Frankenstein monster and the mummy too. You can get tin, some snips and create your own cookie cutter designs. If you really want to go all out with the idea of gingerbread characters for Halloween.

Decorating the gingerbread men would be a bit challenging. I wouldn't like to use a lot of black icing so I'd get creative and turn them into colourful characters. Bring in more green and orange, black isn't the only traditional Halloween colour. Why should cookies be so darkly Gothic?

Pick a recipe for a basic or simple sugar cookie. These are the type which you can roll out, cut and decorate. Not every recipe will be roller friendly so if you try a new recipe read it all the way through first. Some may need refrigeration, some may be crispy and likely to break and snap once they are baked. Martha Stewart has a basic sugar cookie recipe, but if you have a family favourite stick with that!

Ghastly, spooky, creepy ideas in cookie cutting (and decorating) for Halloween.

Decorating cookies is a great way to make your best creative notions as edible creations. Use a simple cookie recipe, cut out the cookie shapes, decorate them, bake them and share them with family, friends and whoever wears the best costume.