Christmas in the old west

Linda Ford: Banff, Alberta’s History, Healing Waters…and a Castle!

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Thanks for having me here again. It’s always great fun.

The heroine in my Christmas novella is headed for Banff to work in the sanatorium hospital. I’ve always wanted to set a story in Banff. So far this story is the closest I’ve come.

Although the natives had known of the hot springs in the mountains and used them as sacred waters it was three railway workers, searching for gold on their day off, who found the cave and descended into the underground area to become the first reported white men to see the hot springs. They built a fence around the area and constructed a shack. They charged for hot baths. A gold mine of another sort.

Unfortunately for them, the Canadian Pacific Railway people decided to suggest the government set up a federal reserve and thus Banff National Park was formed.

Dr. Brett built a hospital/spa where people came for healing. This is the place my heroine is hoping to reach.  Hundreds of people came to be treated by the sulfur-rich and smelly waters. The handrails on the stairway of the hospital were held up by crutches that were no longer needed by patients thus emphasizing the healing properties of the water. (In fact crutches were given to all patients whether or not they needed them so the handrails were not an indication of the healing achieved from the springs.)

Soon William Van Horne, general manager of the Canadian Pacific Railway, recognized the potential of the hot springs to attract tourists (and use the railway) and decided to build a luxury hotel nestled in the Canadian Rockies. The 250 room hotel opened in 1888 and was immediately filled to capacity with wealthy European tourists despite the high prices of a room at $3.50 a night.

The ‘castle in the Rockies’ is still operational and still luxurious although it has undergone changes.  A fire in 18926 destroyed one wing which was rebuilt. In the ‘30s the hotel was a high profile getaway for celebrities. Because or travel restrictions during World War II the hotel actually closed for three years.

But Banff is more than hot springs and castles. It is majestic scenery, bustling little shops, hikes of every sort. It is museums of the local natives, the wildlife and the early explorers. Whyte Museum is always on my list of stops in Banff. Banff is fun little bistros and sandwich shops as well as fine dining. Of course there are still hot springs to swim in. And the Banff Springs Hotel to visit. The main areas are open to the public. It is well worth a few hours of your time. Be sure to pick up a brochure for a self-guided tour of the hotel.

For more information Google Cave and Basin, Banff, Banff Springs Hotel.

If you have questions or comments, please feel free to comment on the blog and I’ll respond as best I can.  And please pick up the Christmas collection that has my novella in—A Cowboy’s Christmas is the name of my story in the collection, Christmas Under Western Skies. Everyone who leaves a comment will be entered to win a copy of the book.

A Pass, a Town and a Story

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South Pass is a bleak, sagebrush-dotted valley amid the high country of southwestern Wyoming.  The place isn’t much to look at but it played a vital role in the history of the Westward migration.  Here’s why.  South Pass is the lowest point on the Continental Divide between the Central and Southern Rocky Mountains.  At an elevation of 7,550 feet, the pass furnishes a natural crossing point of the Rockies and has historically been the route for the Oregon California Trail and Oregon Trail during the 19th century.  If you go there now, you can still see the deep ruts where the wagons passed.

South Pass City sprang into existence as a stage and telegraph station on the Oregon Trail during the 1850s. In 1866 gold was discovered in the vicinity, and a year later prospecting began. Prospectors and adventurers quickly arrived. Within a year the community’s population had swelled to about 2,000.

At one time or another, most of the West’s legendary figures would have passed through the place.  One of those who arrived in 1869 was Esther Hobart Morris. In 1870 she was the first woman in the U.S. to serve as a Justice of the Peace.  A  young barmaid who worked there came to be known later as Calamity Jane.

By 1870 most of the gold had played out, and the population of South Pass had dwindled to about 100.  With the coming of the Union Pacific Railroad, the area had also lost its importance as a migration route.  Over time, South Pass City became a ghost town.

At the end of the 20th century steps were taken to renew the community and turn it into a historic site. As a result the community today consists of two areas: South Pass City, in which a handful of residents live, and South Pass City State Historic Site, which preserves more than 30 historic structures dating from the city’s heyday in the 1860s and 1870s. In 1970, the community was added to the National Register of Historic Places.

So why am I telling you all this?  Because my new Western time-travel romance, CHRISTMAS MOON, now available in Amazon in Kindle format, is set in and around South Pass, both past and present.  Here’s a summary:

Anything can happen under a Christmas Moon…

Pregnant, unwed and down on her luck, history teacher Emma Carlyle is facing the worst Christmas of her life.  Needing some research for her master’s thesis on legendary Wyoming lawman J.D. McNulty, she makes a Christmas Eve drive to South Pass City, where J.D. was buried.  Heading home, she loses her way in a storm.  After her car vanishes, she ends up in 1870, half-frozen and in labor, on the doorstep of a remote mountain cabin.  When J.D. himself opens the door with a pistol in one hand and a bottle of whiskey in the other…well, let’s just say that sparks start flying.  These two lost souls are clearly meant for each other.  But there’s one problem.  Emma has studied everything about J.D.–and she knows he has only a few weeks to live.

Elizabeth Lane has penned a sensual time travel romp that will delight the reader from beginning to end.  

More about the story next month.  Meanwhile, you can find an excerpt and purchase link on my web site, http:// www.elizabethlaneauthor.com .

Charlene Sands and Cheryl St. John’s Christmas in October

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Since Cheryl St. John and I both have short Christmas stories in Western Winter Wedding Bells we thought it would be fun to chat with you together. We both love the holiday season and I feel blessed authoring this anthology with two very talented writers!  Hope you enjoy this fun little perspective about our stories!

How would you describe your heroes, Alpha or Beta?    Do you want to slap his face or wash his underwear?

CHERYL SAYS:  I usually write a beta hero. That seems to be the way I’m wired when it comes to creating characters. I do occasionally make a concentrated effort to do an alpha male, and it’s a lot of fun. If I made a list of all the heros in all my books, the percentage would lean heavily toward betas.

CHARLENE SAYS:  Oh, slap his face, to be sure!   I write mostly Alpha heroes, who have a soft side that they rarely show.  Cooper Garnett is hot, sexy, tortured and on a secret mission to hunt down the man responsible for his wife and child’s murder.  He’s not happy that a robbery left him injured on the Double J Ranch with a widow woman and boy tending him. They are a painful reminder of the family he’d lost.  Though, there’s some underwear washing going on too!


Is there someone in your story that STEALS the show?  Any cute kids, pets or secondary characters we might see again?

CHARLENE SAYS:  Eighteen-month old Johnny Bodine slowly worms his way Cooper’s hardened heart.  He’s the same age as the boy Cooper lost many months ago and he’s quite adorable, if I say so myself.  Probably won’t be seeing him again, but he’s a keeper!   

CHERYL SAYS: She doesn’t steal the show, but Owen’s youngest sister JoDee captured my interest. She’s a gifted musician in a small town, and Owen plans to send her to a conservatory. She might show up again.
 

It takes skill to create a satisfying story in the short novella format.  Do you have any tips for writing to this length?

CHERYL SAYS:  A novella needs all the same elements as a full-length novel: Engaging sympathetic characters, internal and external conflict, believable motivation, a realistic setting and hooks that keep the reader turning pages. However, you have a lot fewer pages in which to do all that. Here are a few techniques I use.

*  The first place I look for a story is in my idea file where I’ve saved ideas that didn’t have enough conflict to support a full-length novel. Don’t ever throw out an idea—the archives are a gold mine when you need a novella.

*  It can be helpful if the hero and heroine already know each other. There is less set up and getting-to-know-you time involved.

*  When developing your characters, don’t give both major story people complicated pasts or set them both up with difficult to resolve motivations or conflicts. Keep the major stumbling block to falling in love focused on one character.

*  One character may already be in love with the other or have admired them from afar.

*  Use a secondary character from a previous book as your hero or heroine. You already have their names and descriptions decided and most likely your setting has been established, so your job is easier.

*   Secondary characters are important, but one character may serve several purposes. Look to combine characters if the cast gets too large.

*  Use stereotypes for secondary characters. The reader already has expectations and a mental image.

CHARLENE SAYS:  Pretty much what Cheryl said, but I’ll emphasize that reunion stories work very well.  If they know each other first, then they have past history. But I broke the rules in Wearing the Rancher’s Ring– Cooper’s mission to hunt down his family’s murderer, works well because the conflict to see justice to the end, wars with the eventual love he feels for Rachel and Johnny. He’s torn and that’s makes for a very strong conflict. 

Also, I write only 8 chapters in an anthology, keep the pace fast and the story moving forward. Each scene has to be important. No room for dallying, as they say.

How did you come up with a story to fit the Christmas or Springtime theme?

 

CHARLENE SAYS:  The setting played an important role with this Christmas themed story. When you think Christmas, you immediately think of snow, cold winter days and sizzling fireplaces.  So I was lucky with this story since I’d left one heroine hanging, without a story in my full-length western historical, Bodine’s Bounty.  Rachel’s tale had to be told.  And she lived in northern California, where, guess what?  There’s snow, cold winter days and fireplaces.  The same holds true for Mother’s Day or Spring Brides themes. Though they CAN be set anywhere, I tend to think of them as clear blue-sky places, a western setting on the plains or small towns of the Old West.

CHERYL SAYS:  Anthologies are most often released in time for Mother’s Day or Christmas, so those themes are already established. My novellas have always been part of a western collection, so that narrows the possibilities even further. I just start thinking cowboy hero or small town holiday or babies, and an idea comes to me. As I mentioned in my previous list of novella tips, I sometimes have a story set aside because it wouldn’t work for a full-length book, and this is a good place to use it. I often use a secondary character from a previous book whose story begs to be told.

What one word would describe your heroine?  

CHERYL SAYS:  Tenacious.  Chloe does not give up. She is bound and determined to save her grandfather’s church, and she’s fighting with all her resources–as well as Owen’s–to see the task completed before the deadline.

CHARLENE SAYS:  Survivor.   Rachel has endured much loss and suffering in her life, but as a young widow with a little son to raise, she still manages to keep her heartache to herself and keep the ranch going.

Now tell us why?

CHERYL SAYS :  She’s alone and always has been. The church is her connection to the only family she ever had–her grandfather. She will do anything in her power to save it from demolition.

CHARLENE SAYS:  Rachel doesn’t try to find a new beau, or a man to marry. She was deeply in love with her husband and never thought she would find love again.  The appearance of Cooper Garnett on her ranch and the yearning she feels for him makes her realize how lonely she truly is. 

Any special Christmas traditions in your story?  And what holiday traditions do you enjoy today with your family?

CHARLENE SAYS:  In Wearing the Rancher’s Ring, Rachel maintains the same traditions that she had enjoyed with her husband Josh.  She asks Cooper to chop down a small pine tree and then she invites her ranch hands inside the house to string popcorn and help decorate the tree.  Her humble home is open to friends and they sing carols, enjoy her pumpkin muffins and cakes as she hands out knitted gifts to her close friends and her loyal employees.  

Our family spends Christmas Eve together every year at my sister’s house.  It’s a fun night of eating honey-baked ham with all the fixings and playing games.  We open gifts and eat some more!  The most wonderful thing about Christmas is that the entire family is together. 

CHERYL SAYS: Christmas in Red Willow features a family gathering with all the chaos that makes the day special and memorable. Owen’s family plays parlor games, to which Chloe has never been exposed.

My family plays board games on winter holidays. We play Masterpiece, Monopoly, Scrabble, Aggravation, Clue, Uno and more recently, Life. I introduced the younger kids to Apples to Apples a long time ago. They were all excellent readers at a very young age and the game helped their vocabulary skills as well as being fun. We just like to laugh, and that is parallel to Owen’s family.  

CHARLENE SAYS:  Would you believe that I found fully decorated Christmas trees in a department store in the middle of September?  Which warrants this question:  What kind of holiday shopper are you?  Do you shop early and often?  Do you wait until after Thanksgiving?  Or are you a last minute shopper, waiting until the week of Christmas?

One lucky commenter today will win a $10 Amazon Gift Card and for a bigger Amazon Holiday Shopping Spree go to Charlene’s website at www.charlenesands.com and visit her Win Stuff page.

 

 

 

HOWDY FROM A NEW FILLY

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Hi everyone!  I’m Cheryl Pierson (Cheryl #2 here at P&P)!  This is my first “official” post as a new filly, and I’m very excited to be here at Petticoats & Pistols in such great company!  I’ve done a couple of guest posts in the past, and from the moment I began to get to know my “fellow fillies,” I knew I wanted to be here amongst ya!

I won’t bore you with too many details–just want to tell you a little about me and I’d love to hear about you all, too.  I was born in Duncan, Oklahoma, in 1957.  I had two “way older” sisters (10 and 12 when I came along) and I was a Tomboy–with a capital “T” for sure!  Although I loved Barbie, I’d much rather have been playing cowboys and Indians–probably why I chose to write western historicals.

I finally got to go to a rodeo when I was about 9 with my cousin, and Larry Mahan was there!  I was in love.  After that, I wanted to be a barrel racer, thinking that would be a great way to get those handsome cowboys to notice me when I was older…of course, that was a huge pipe dream since my family was NOT into rodeoing at all.  But my first “serious” little story I wrote in elementary school had a guy in it named “Larry” and girl named “Cherry” (original, huh?)

My dad was an oilfield hand–a chemical engineer, on call 24/7 for as long as I can remember.  Mom was the “June Cleaver” type, and both of them were appalled when I told them I wanted to write books for a living.  As they predicted, that dream had to be placed on hold for many years–enough time for me to marry and raise my two kids–with a myriad of “real jobs” (as others called them) in between.

But I was writing all the time, every spare minute I got.  I started out with an idea for a western romance, and the more I wrote, the bigger the story became, until I had a 1000 page manuscript!  Of course, it’s still unsold (go figure!) but it’s the book of my heart–and I know each of you has written a book that holds that special place in your heart, as well.  That was what I needed to “get me going.”  Ideas flowed, and so did the words.

Although that first “tome” is still as yet unpublished, the third book I wrote, FIRE EYES, was published in May 2009, and went on to become an EPIC Award finalist.  The Wild Rose Press also published two of my western short stories, and my first contemporary romantic suspense, SWEET DANGER, will be released on October 1.

The fourth book I wrote, TIME PLAINS DRIFTER, was published through another smaller press.  After a few short months, we parted ways, and TIME PLAINS DRIFTER is homeless again. My daughter designed my cover for this book so it’s very special to me.  It also garnered me the award of Honorable Mention for Best New Paranormal Author in PNR’s PEARL Awards this year.

Right now, I am waiting (on pins and needles) to hear back from Berkley about one of my manuscripts that’s under consideration with them.  GABRIEL’S LAW was the third place recipient in this year’s historical category in the San Antonio Romance Authors’ Merritt Contest.  The judge for that final round asked for the full manuscript. It’s been thirty-five days, six hours and fourteen minutes…but who’s counting?

I live in Oklahoma City with my “transplanted” (from West Virginia) husband, Gary, who plans to make good on his threat to retire this fall.  My daughter, Jessica, is 23 and works at an actors’ casting agency here.  My son, Casey, is 20 and a physics major in college (and believe me, those math and science genes did not come from me!)  Along with my business partner, I teach writing classes for all ages, and have done lots of work with the Indian Education Program for one of the major school systems here in OK City.  And I’m FINALLY getting to actually write! 

Thank you all so much for your warm welcome and your generous friendships.  I am thrilled to be here–a “regular filly!”

I’ll leave you with an excerpt from one of my short stories,  A NIGHT FOR MIRACLES. 

When a wounded drifter and three children appear at her doorstep, widow Angela Bentley can’t turn them away.  Nick Dalton has a dangerous reputation, but is it truly deserved, or is it just talk?  Will love find two lonely people on this, A NIGHT FOR MIRACLES?

FROM “A NIGHT FOR MIRACLES”:

Angela placed the whiskey-damp cloth against the jagged wound. The man flinched, but held himself hard against the pain. Finally, he opened his eyes. She looked into his sun-bronzed face, his deep blue gaze burning with a startling, compelling intensity as he watched her. He moistened his lips, reminding Angela that she should give him a drink. She laid the cloth in a bowl and turned to pour the water into the cup she’d brought.

He spoke first. “What…what’s your name?” His voice was raspy with pain, but held an underlying tone of gentleness. As if he were apologizing for putting her to this trouble, she thought. The sound of it comforted her. She didn’t know why, and she didn’t want to think about it. He’d be leaving soon.

“Angela.” She lifted his head and gently pressed the metal cup to his lips. “Angela Bentley.”

He took two deep swallows of the water. “Angel,” he said, as she drew the cup away and set it on the nightstand. “It fits.”

She looked down, unsure of the compliment and suddenly nervous. She walked to the low oak chest to retrieve the bandaging and dishpan. “And you are…”

“Nick Dalton, ma’am.” His eyes slid shut as she whirled to face him. A cynical smile touched his lips. “I see…you’ve heard of me.”

A killer. A gunfighter. A ruthless mercenary. What was he doing with these children? She’d heard of him, all right, bits and pieces, whispers at the back fence. Gossip, mainly. And the stories consisted of such variation there was no telling what was true and what wasn’t.

She’d heard. She just hadn’t expected him to be so handsome. Hadn’t expected to see kindness in his eyes. Hadn’t expected to have him show up on her doorstep carrying a piece of lead in him, and with three children in tow. She forced herself to respond through stiff lips. “Heard of you? Who hasn’t?”

He met her challenging stare. “I mean you no harm.”

She remained silent, and he closed his eyes once more. His hands rested on the edge of the sheet, and Angela noticed the traces of blood on his left thumb and index finger. He’d tried to stem the blood flow from his right side as he rode. “I’m only human, it seems, after all,” he muttered huskily. “Not a legend tonight. Just a man.”

He was too badly injured to be a threat, and somehow, looking into his face, she found herself trusting him despite his fearsome reputation. She kept her expression blank and approached the bed with the dishpan and the bandaging tucked beneath her arm. She fought off the wave of compassion that threatened to engulf her. It was too dangerous. When she spoke, her tone was curt. “A soldier of fortune, from what I hear.”

He gave a faint smile. “Things aren’t always what they seem, Miss Bentley.”

http://www.cherylpierson.com

The Night Before Christmas – Filly Style!

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JEFFREY KOTERBA’S ARTWORK USED WITH PERMISSION

VISIT HIS WEBSITE: http://jeffreykoterba.com/

koterba_santa_covered_wagon

‘Twas the night before Christmas in this Junction of ours;

The sky over the prairie was ablaze with bright stars;


Our boots were lined up by the fire with care,

In hopes that Old Santa Claus soon would be there;


Felicia’s ornery mule napped snug there in the barn,

Whilst our visiting guest was spinning a yarn;


O’course Winnie in her wool socks and Tanya in her cap,

Had just settled down for a long winter’s nap,


When out in the corral there arose such a ruckus,

I sprang from bed to see what the heck was…


…outside the window, there on the barn roof,

Victoria banged open the shutters and near busted a tooth!


The moon was so bright it near blinded my eye

And the snow landed like whippin’ cream coverin’ a pie,


When, what to my hornswaggled eyes should appear,

But a covered wagon and eight dusty reindeer!


With a little old driver wearing boots and a hat,

I knew for durned sure he was related to Pat.


He was cheery and bright, a right jolly cowpoke,

And I laughed when I saw him; he was my kind of  folk.


Those reindeers, they ain’t docile. What a hissy they threw!

Nearly toppled the wagon, and Old Santa Claus too.


Quicker’n a youngin’ off to play hookie,

That old geezer came in and asked Linda for a cookie;


She found one and he ate it, so Stacey got milk

Then Karen, she presented him with a scarf made of silk.


But Mary, she hung back, I think she was a’feared

‘Cause all night she trembled and her eyes how they teared


No worry, Margaret told her, the fat guy’s a friend.

To us in the Junction and those ’round the bend,


Sure ’nuff Santa left a package in each Fillies’ boot,

Didn’t matter none to him, they was dusted with soot.


Then somethin’ happened, caught us all by surprise,

Pam and Cheryl showed up with an armload of pies.


We sat down to eat ’em, and they tasted fine,

Though they couldn’t have baked ’em; They hadn’t had time;


Old Santa asked for seconds; Bet that’s why he’s merry.

He tried pumpkin and apple, even pe-can and cherry.


Charlene heaped on whipped cream, and still he ate more.

His belly how it swelled! Would he fit out the door?


“It’s my big night,” he declared.  “Only comes once a year.”

Good thing for that, too, or he’d burst I do fear.


He stifled a burp, and a pipe out it came;

“Smoking’s not good for you,” we did loudly exclaim.


“All that sugar and now this, think of your health.

“Think of all the children that count of your jolly old self!”


He listened real close and even nodded his head,

Took right to his heart everything we had said.


He tossed that old pipe in the fire with a pop,

“The Missus, she’s been tryin’ to get me to stop,”


With a hearty laugh and a promise to come back.

The Fillies watched that old fella leap up the smokestack.


He sprang to his sleigh, to his team gave a yee-haw,

And away they all flew, like twister-flung straw.


And we heard him exclaim as that team took flight,

“Merry Christmas, you bloggers, and to all a good-night.”

Smile, Pardner – It’s Christmas!

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 Margaret  Brownley

margaretbrownleyIf you’re like me, you’ve probably had your full of Christmas cheer and gift wrappings about now, and are longing for a little bit of that “peace on earth” we keep hearing about.  

Still, no matter how hectic our lives might seem at the moment, nothing compares to  Christmas in the old west.  Instead of forging their way through crowded malls and reams of wrapping paper, early pioneers living in canvas homes, soddies and log cabins battled blizzards, bitter cold and driving winds. In 1849, Catherine Haun wrote in her diary that her family’s Christmas present was the rising of the Sacramento River that flooded the whole town.

santa-claus-train_~k2571843Those of you planning to travel this holiday season might empathize with the passengers who spent the Christmas of 1870 on Kansas-Pacific trains stuck in snow.   Fortunately soldiers from a nearby fort provided fresh buffalo meat, which is a whole lot more than you get if you’re stuck at the airport.

We don’t generally associate fireworks with Christmas, but for some early settlers it was the only way to celebrate. In 1895, a riot broke out in Austin on Christmas Day when revelers shot off Roman candles. Animals stampeded, but law and order was soon restored.   Other parts of Texas didn’t have it so lucky.  The Fort Worth Gazette reported several incidences of people being shot and stabbed on Christmas Day over the use of Roman candles.  In some places, fire crackers were encouraged as this piece in a 1880s newspaper attests: “Firecrackers are in evidence creating the genuine Christmas atmosphere of gunpowder smoke.” 

While most pioneers decorated their Christmas trees with strung popcorn, berries and pictures from Arbuckle’s coffee, McCade Texas takes the prize for the most unusual ornaments.  On Christmas morning in 1883, three men were found hanging from a tree.  If that wasn’t festive enough, the shootout that followed provided “genuine atmosphere” a-plenty.  

What is Christmas without a feast?  Even the poorest of families managed to splurge a little.  Oysters were considered a luxury and one bride in Montana proudly served them to her guests on Christmas Day, unaware that the oysters had spoiled during transport. Her guests fared better than the man named Avery who, on Christmas day in 1850 set out to bag a deer for his dinner and was killed by Indians. 

Margaret’s Christmas tree

Christmas TreeCrime never takes a holiday and that was as true back then as it is now. On Christmas day in 1873, a group of Indians stole five army horses near the Concho River resulting in a shootout.  In 1877 Sam Bass robbed a Fort Worth stagecoach of $11.25, and in 1889 Butch Cassidy pulled his first bank holdup on Christmas Eve at a Telluride, Colorado bank.  That same year, Christmas day proved to be unlucky for a couple of cattle-rustling brothers who were tracked down and shot by the Texas Rangers. 

In the early days of the west, Christmas gifts were modest if not altogether non-existent.  Not so for Johnny Wesley Hardin who got an unexpected gift after he won a duel following a disputed card game.  The good citizens of Towash, Texas spread the word that he was the “fastest gun in the west,” which probably did wonders for his card game. He was also the meanest gun in the west, though he claimed he never killed anyone who didn’t need killing.

a-lady-like-sarahIn case you were wondering, Christmas wasn’t all gunfire and fireworks. In 1881, Tombstone in Arizona Territory made news for having a “quiet” holiday.  Not to worry, they made up for it the following year.

Come to think of it, maybe those crowded malls aren’t so bad, after all, even without the “genuine Christmas atmosphere.” 

 

A Lady Like Sarah is available now.  He’s a preacher; she’s an outlaw.  Both are in need of a miracle.  Ride on over to my homestead and say howdy:

www.margaretbrownley.com

 

 

 

Cheryl St.John’s Trip Down Christmas Tree Lane

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1800s tree and family

I  don’t know what it is about Christmas trees that I love, but I can’t get enough of them. The tree is the best part of Christmas decorating. To read a history of Christmas trees and see photos of my Victorian tree,

CLICK HERE for last year’s blog on the subject.

This year I’m simply going to take you on a stroll down memory lane. Well, we can’t remember back as far as these early photos, but we can sure imagine being there. That’s what we do after all: Put ourselves inn another place and sometimes another time and imagine what it would be like.

1896 gifts on treeWhen I think about early trees, I think of stories like Laura Ingalls Wilder and the settlers who strung popcorn and berries and made paper chains to have something to out on the trees.

Some people had beautiful glass ornaments they brought to America from other countries, but the common folk usually made do with what they had around the house or what they could make with feathers and scraps of fabric and lace and flour and water paste.

It was once the custom to place the gifts on the tree, as seen in the photo on the right. Can’t see that being practical unless the gifts were mittens and handmade items. Today Guitar Hero would never fit on a tree, and the branches sure wouldn’t hold a portable DVD player.

feather-treeI never had a fondness for tinsel. It was often charged with static and clung to clothes and hands and was forever on the carpet and tangled in the vacuum. But the kids loved it, so we often draped all the branches ever so carefully and watched it sparkle.

I inherited a few vintage cardboard and glitter houses that were my grandmother’s as well as a plastic Santa and sleigh. Plastic was a new invention when she bought the set! She had a whole village with bottle brush trees and cotton snow. I think I must have inherited my love of Christmas décor from her. I sure came by the collecting bug naturally too.

My grandmother had an aluminum tree with a color wheel. Can’t land one of those cheap any more. They are hard to find and expensive when you do find one.

So many times we think the things we use were recent inventions, but just look at the photo below with all the dolls and see one of the first artificial trees! And it’s lit with candles. What a fire hazard. There were also feather trees.

I’m holding my annual Great Christmas Tree Tour on my blog and have enjoyed all the trees readers and authors have shared. It’s always so much fun to see how differently people decorate.

Christmas trees are like snowflakes: No two are ever alike.

colored from lifepink 50s feather tree

white tree

alum treeadvertisesmentfake tree

cardboard villagevillage gypsum compo

I want to take this opportunity to remind you that HER COLORADO MAN is in stores this month. I learned that the warehouses have plenty in stock, so if you don’t find a copy, ask for it at your local bookseller and they will order a copy for you.

I have my shopping finished and my Christmas tree is decorated. How about you?

treecover9780373295715

Have You Been Kissed Under The Mistletoe?

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Janet-Tronstad This is Janet Tronstad and I’m very pleased to visit with you here in P & P. Before I mention my latest Christmas book, I just have to ask though.  Have any of you ever been kissed under one of those big kissing balls? The ones the Victorians used to make of mistletoe and hang up for their parties?

My latest novella is in a book entitled ‘Mistletoe Courtship’ and I realize I don’t even know anyone who has seen one of those kissing balls. I’m hoping that some of you have though. The mistletoe I usually see at Christmas is one of those small pressed-looking twigs that you buy in the plastic wrapper. I’m sure the Victorians would be appalled.  

From what I’ve read, they took their mistletoe seriously.  I didn’t realize that if you went un-kissed when you were standing under a kissing ball (male or female) it was supposed to mean you would never get married. Talk about pressure. I’m sure that was reason enough to line up. mistletoecourtship

In our culture, it seems to me that we save The Big Kiss for New Year’s Eve.  What’s your take on it?  Do you think mistletoe is still popular? Do any of you have any hanging in your house as we speak?  Do you plan to put some up this year?  And – for the big question – have you ever been trapped under some mistletoe with someone who wanted to kiss you and you’d rather not kiss them back? What’d you do?

I’ll be happy to send a copy of ‘Mistletoe Courtship’ to one of the people who post today so leave a comment if you can.

Petticoats & Pistols