Believe it or not, my late grandparents would not even decorate their Christmas Tree until Christmas Eve back in the 1950s and 1960s. Such a statement today would bring a huge sigh since to many, Christmas Eve means that the fun of the holidays is almost over. Nowadays, Thanksgiving has virtually become Mrs. Christmas, being simply the housewife of the future holiday where the focus is on cooking, inviting guests, and shopping for the holiday that has nothing to do with Pilgrims, and winter decorations dominating over autumn decorations. And for those looking for a trend to reverse this, too bad, move to another planet! That said, answer these:

1. When did you first notice the trend of advertising (TV/radio commercials) before Thanksgiving? I wasn't around, but hear it was common starting in the early 1980s. Halloween? Around the year 2000.
2. When did you first notice radio stations playing Christmas music before Thanksgiving?
3. When did you first notice some people decorating their homes for Christmas before Thanksgiving? Sometime in the early 2000s
4. When did you first notice festive events such as Christmas plays (Nutcracker, a Christmas Carol), Christmas movies, Tree lightings being celebrated before Thanksgiving? Late 1990s

Feel free in other countries where Thanksgiving isn't celebrated (or in Canada in October) to reply since I've read stories of similar seasonal creep over there. I've put my answers in bold.

2. When did you first notice radio stations playing Christmas music before Thanksgiving?

I would say the day after Thanksgiving, they would play them over and over and over for the next month or so.

1. When did you first notice the trend of advertising (TV/radio commercials) before Thanksgiving?

Well in supermarkets and it happens in every supermarket where they want to advertise a few months before the holiday even starts, it's ridiculous! For Christmas stuff, they bring it out in October.

In the Netherlands we have the Sinterklaas time of the year, which lasts from mid november to December 5th, which is the traditional day for presents, and that blocks much of the Christmas stuff, but I saw in August already specific Sinterklaas food. I think ten years ago that was at earliest in October.

As strange as it may sound but as for advertising it was in the 70's. In mid August there would be Christmas album
commercials. They had to be ordered that early to guarantee delivery before Christmas. As for everything else, it
was....yeah, early 80's.

Sad thing is, pushing Christmas up pushes everything else up as well. Halloween candy and decorations in August and -
I kid you not - back to school sales in the last week of June.

I don't know about elsewhere, but here in the Philadelphia area, in some stores Valentine's day items can be bought
before New Year. Pretty much all stores on Jan. 2.

Here in the UK I've seen mince pies sold in September, but most shops seem to start selling Christmas things in October. Mid-November is when Christmas lights in cities are switched on. Radio stations start playing Christmas songs in late November (I heard my first of the year yesterday!). It seems to have been this way for as long as I can remember (I'm 23).

Something that HAS changed, though, is the date the post-Christmas sales begin. It used to be the January sales, then the Boxing Day (26th December) sales, and some shops now have online sales beginning on Christmas Day! Bizarrely, we now also have Black Friday sales even though we don't have Thanksgiving.

Sad thing is, pushing Christmas up pushes everything else up as well. Halloween candy and decorations in August and -
I kid you not - back to school sales in the last week of June.


I know, parents want to get ready for the holiday so they stack up so they don't have to go out again.

In the late 90's I do remember Christmas songs around Thanksgiving or just after. All the stores stocking up on Christmas before Halloween wasn't until some time in the 2000's.

I'm pretty sure after the Christmas holiday, they are going to get ready for Valentine's Day. ::)

We have a radio station here 106.9 used to play pop, oldies and soft rock, but it is now solely a Christmas Music Station; They've been playing Christmas music, since October....yuck!

In Germany, shops start to sell Christmas goodies around September. The first Christmas markets start in mid-November and most people start to decorate their homes after "Sunday in commemoration of the dead" which is the last Sunday before Advent, which usually starts in late November/early December. (Advent started last Sunday this year!)

In Germany, it is also common not to have a Christmas Tree at home before Christmas Eve. When I was young, the decorated tree with the presents was revealed in the evening of December 24th. I was not allowed to enter the living room the whole day. I think most families in Germany do it that way.

We usually get rid of our Christmas stuff after around January 6th-10th. Some familes already do so after January 1st which I find a bit early, personally.

We have a radio station here 106.9 used to play pop, oldies and soft rock, but it is now solely a Christmas Music Station; They've been playing Christmas music, since October....yuck!


They play Christmas music all year round?

I think it's after December that they start putting up Valentine's Day and Easter products.

In Germany, it is also common not to have a Christmas Tree at home before Christmas Eve. When I was young, the decorated tree with the presents was revealed in the evening of December 24th. I was not allowed to enter the living room the whole day. I think most families in Germany do it that way.

We usually get rid of our Christmas stuff after around January 6th-10th. Some familes already do so after January 1st which I find a bit early, personally.


That is how it was in my house when I was growing up. The tree was put up the day of the 24th, and we decorated it
at night. Usually the Christmas decorations came down on Jan. 7, the day after the Epiphany. I no longer hold on to that
tradition. It started when my kids were grown, the tree is up and decorated two weeks before Christmas and the decorations
are down and put away the day after.

the tree is up and decorated two weeks before Christmas and the decorations
are down and put away the day after.


This is reasonable, because the tree will be quite dry after 2+ weeks. However, I can't understand some of my neighbors who buy the tree a day before Christmas and get rid of it only one week later.

We have a tree about one week before Christmas, and keep it until around Epiphany (Jan 6th).
Once we did not throw it away, but planted it in the garden, which succeeded.

We would put our tree up the week before Christmas and take it on Jan 2nd.


Cat

We have a tree about one week before Christmas, and keep it until around Epiphany (Jan 6th).
Once we did not throw it away, but planted it in the garden, which succeeded.


What did it grow into?

What did it grow into?


A huuge pine of 6 ft.

A huuge pine of 6 ft.


Wow, that's amazing!  :o