Home For the Holidays: Decorating with Patricia A. Wolf

Baking, decorating, family…all the things that fill the holidays with joy. Join our Entangled authors as they share a little something special from their home during the holidays.

Christmas is a magical time of year where the decorations, music, and people come together to celebrate the holy night. I love the feelings Christmas brings out in me. It’s not the gifts or treats that make it so special. It’s the love and joy that can be seen on the faces of the young and old. Christmas is the best time of the year to find peace and hope—the gathering of family and friends, the sparkling lights, the yummy scents, the wondrous allure of all the colors and displays help bring it all together. It’s also the charity in people’s hearts and the need to help others. I find inspiration in that. My heart fills with joy as my family and I donate food to foodbanks, clothing to Christian Charities, and toys for the Marine Toys for Tots program. These heartwarming experiences add to the excitement of picturing and planning the decorating I’ll be arranging around the house and yard and the foods and desserts I’ll be preparing to share with family and friends—and the joy we’ll share together.

For me, decorating comes first. I always look forward to when stores start putting Christmas items out for sale—I don’t care if it’s still October. All things Christmas makes me happy. From the decorating to the baking, I want it all. I’ll even wrap every Christmas present with a smile, looking forward to the day I get to place them under our magnificent tree.

Every year I work on building and designing the perfect layout for my Christmas village. I added two new pieces this year. Some years I add new buildings, others I’m looking for trees or figurines. I believe this is my daughters favorite. She and I both marvel at the village and dream of what living in a quaint little town like the one we create would be like. We think of ice skating, snow ball fights, holiday parades, hot chocolate, and Christmas carolers. Pure magic.

I’m also a huge fan of creating the perfect table with table cloths, napkins, candles, flowers, everything that will make the table look amazing. I’m a fan of the color red, which you’ll notice in all my pictures. Red is a beautiful color symbolizing the blood of Christ, strength, power, determination, as well as passion, desire, and love.

This year I created two corner pieces with flowing white reeds, glittering red twisted vines, and poinsettia. They came out looking exactly as I had hoped. One of my favorite stores to shop at for holiday supplies is Michael’s. I had all these items picked out in minutes and was eager to put it all together. Even the hubby gave it a thumbs up. Merry Christmas.