This is our 10th Christmas at Henniker House and we’re
settling into our own style. Some of you
know we bought an operating B&B and its contents. It took us months to sort through all the
stuff, decide what to keep and what to move on.
The guys at the transfer station were our first and best friends in
town.
The previous owner had several fake trees up in the
attic. We don’t know if she put them all
up or if the collection resulted from the search for a perfect fake. The tops of two served as outdoor decorations
until last year when the elements took their toll. Phil is currently fashioning planters for two
real trees we got at Forster’s (http://forsterschristmastreefarm.com/
) to adorn the front porch. We hang
garlands on the porch rails with purple bows to accent the trim on the
house. And there’s purple in the ski chair.
All this was beyond me.
Trees were a bit of a mystery; real vs. fake, lights, tinsel and
ornaments as cat toys – grrr! For my
adult life before innkeeping, I was the visiting Aunt who arrived at my
siblings’ houses, bringing presents and getting their children high on sugar
and Santa. Even though I didn't put up a
tree, I collected ornaments. Now I
decorate the tree with memories.
My mother was crafty and spoiled her cats. From the mid 1980’s to the early 2000’s, she
fed her cats enough Fancy Feast to redeem labels for the collector’s edition
ornaments for her children.
One year she asked us to save wine corks for a craft project. She was a bit surprised how many we generated. Now my cork reindeer is missing an eye but he makes me smile.
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| missing eye turned toward tree! Note Bruce the Moose - another of Mom's creations |
While working in Europe, I visited a Christmas market in Koln Germany. When I hang the carved wood ornaments I bought there, I can almost taste the hot cider from that cold evening. Chicago has a German style market (http://www.christkindlmarket.com/) where I found a wooden skier to celebrate the real live skier here in New Hampshire.
There are two canoes I hang on the tree. One is a felt canoe from the year we went to
see the Christmas Revels tell the French Canadian story of a flying canoe –
wild dancing and kitchen music! What a
wonderful birthday celebration for me.
The other is a little red canoe that makes me think of summers at my
grandmother’s cottage in Muskoka Ontario.
There are two porcelain roses from Lucy who manned reception
and served as surrogate mother to many. When Lucy passed away the daughter she
gave birth to called to let us know, and Lucy’s GE daughters filled a row at
church. I made some good friends at GE and had the pleasure of seeing several this year.
There are a couple of things that go on the tree that others
might have put in the trash. One is a
wire basket from a bottle of champagne that my niece Alison bought because she
drinks the good stuff. My niece Jess’
creative gift tags that look like art to me so up they went! The angel on top was made out of a toilet
paper roll, a paper doily and an aluminum foil ball for a head. Phil’s daughter Jenna was 5 when she made
that and I think it has its own special beauty.
Besides the tree, there are stockings hung on a bookcase (no
fireplace mantle here) and the Victorian village set up in the Bear room. Most of the buildings were up in the attic
when we arrived but my sister Jane gave us a house that looks a lot like
Henniker House and I found Phil’s Diner at Edmund’s, here in town, to complete
the scene. This year I added Santa and
reindeer from Mom’s attic to the village.
We should all have reindeer on the roof.
So there you have it – Christmas decorating Henniker House
style.
You now know a little more about the people who host you here than if we put up something like this
If you too hang memories on your tree, you’ll feel right at home at Henniker House. Come visit during the holidays or anytime.
Wishing you a very happy season surrounded by people you
love.
