Our family received tickets for a carriage ride around the Gaylord Opryland Hotel.

We were so excited to see Opryland's Christmas lights and decorations, but--as we learned the hard way--Opryland's no place to take your family Christmas photo!

No sooner had we bought our fresh fir from the Brentwood Christmas tree stand on Franklin Rd. (between Brentwood United Methodist Church and Fresh Market.)...

...than NPR ran an ad about finding local Tennessee tree farms.

What do you know? Several Christmas tree varieties are native to Tennessee, and choosing a local Christmas tree is good for the environment.

Here's more information about local Christmas trees from the Pick TN Products website's directory of TN tree farms:

We're giving my brother-in-law's family a Honey Baked Ham for Christmas.

Since they live in Florida, I'm sending a gift certificate instead of shipping a ham.

Two things I need to find first:

• a Honey Baked Ham coupon or coupon code
• a cute way to package the gift card

After seeing all the beautiful Brentwood Christmas decorations, I'm treating our same old tree to a fresher look.

Here are some unique theme Christmas trees with a Nashville flavor:

• Fa la la la with a Music City theme tree


• Clip clop through our scenic hills with an equestrian theme tree


• Sight see Nashville with a local landmark theme

We're trying to go green in our Brentwood home this Christmas:

• a real tree
• wreaths handmade from leftover trimmings
• no outdoor lights or inflatable decorations

...and of course, our first set of LED Christmas lights.

After all, LED lights last longer, use less energy, and burn cooler than traditional Christmas lights. I wanted to see how bright LED Christmas lights look in person, so we spent some time this weekend checking Brentwood area stores for availability and prices.

Here's what I found:

Mark your calendars for two more fun things to do for the holidays in Brentwood!

The Brentwood Library hosts two free Christmas events:

• Photos with Santa Claus
• The City of Brentwood's Christmas Tree Lighting!

Looking for fun things to do for the holidays in Brentwood?

After describing our informal Brentwood Christmas Tree tour, we were ready to see Inside-Out Home Furnishings' 2007 holiday display.

Don't miss Inside-Out's 14 beautiful Christmas trees, a few of which are pictured below.

I love finding new Christmas decorating ideas! Here in Brentwood, we have three incredible Christmas tree design centers nearby:

• ReCreations


• Trees-n-Trends


• Inside Out


• along with the annual Christmas At Ellington display.

I know it's only October, but I just couldn't resist wrapping the Christmas gifts I've bought already.

Don't groan! I have to ship overseas.

If you love pattern and color as much as I do, you probably keep selection of pretty gift wrap in your closet.

Here are local resources for finding the perfect wrapping paper at Brentwood stores.

One of my favorite nights of the year is almost here. The annual Brentwood Luminary Night is scheduled for December 10th this year (always the second Saturday in December). On this night, most all of the subdivisions in Brentwood participate in this tradition that was started here in the 1980s.

This Saturday, December 3rd will be the 16th Annual Morning with Santa program at the Brentwood Library. This is a great way to spend a few hours on a Saturday - because it's free, fun and helps get us all in the Christmas spirit.