Thousands of lights, numerous trees, countless ornaments and months of planning and hard work are what it takes to make a memorable White House Christmas. For more than a half century, the First Ladies have played an integral role in the planning of each holiday season. Because of the scope of the project, which includes parties, dinners, creating a theme and, of course, decorating, the First Ladies begin to think about Christmas in February and plan throughout the year. It sounds exhausting, but the results are typically amazing and are showcased in the book Christmas with the First Ladies (Insight Editions) by Coleen Christian Burke.
From Jacqueline Kennedy's "Children's Tree" theme to Michelle Obama's idea to incorporate elements of her vegetable garden into the decorations, every Christmas at the White House over the past 50 years is represented. Some first ladies, including Nancy Reagan and Hillary Clinton, have had the pleasure of planning as many as eight White House Christmas celebrations. Despite the hard work, the enthusiasm expressed by all of the First Ladies featured here is admirable. They all appear to love the holidays and readily accept the challenge of preparing for the events in their own unique way.
Each First Lady is responsible for creating something special for Christmas at the White House. Jacqueline Kennedy displayed a crèche, or Nativity scene, in the East Room, Lady Bird Johnson supplied gingerbread ornaments in all shapes and sizes, Pat Nixon moved the official White House tree from the Blue Room to the Grand Foyer and Betty Ford focused on decorating with homemade American crafts, using common household items. Rosalyn Carter enlisted the help of mentally disabled children to make more than a thousand ornaments, while Nancy Reagan asked for help from volunteers in a drug rehabilitation program to assist with the Christmas celebration. Barbara Bush revived the "Nutcracker" theme that was originally used by Jackie Kennedy, and also focused on needlepoint ornaments, while Hillary Clinton relied on famous designers, including Ralph Lauren, to help with "The Twelve Days of Christmas" theme. Laura Bush brought patriotism to the holidays, with her "Red, White and Blue Christmas," while Michelle Obama focused on handmade ornaments, many of which were made from recycled materials.
Christmas seems to bring out the child in many of us and the First Ladies are no exception. Of course, having young children and grandchildren around always gives the holidays a special meaning and that is reflected in nearly every chapter, from Nancy Reagan's focus on Teddy Bears to Hillary Clinton's 1995 theme, "A Visit From St. Nicholas." There are numerous photos featuring the children and grandchildren of the the First Family throughout the book.
The holidays are typically a wondrous time of the year and they are clearly made even more special at the White House. The seemingly endless number of photographs featured in Christmas with the First Ladies depict a world of beauty and wonder that is not soon forgotten. Readers can participate in various White House celebrations, courtesy of a recipe or craft idea provided by the First Ladies at the end of each chapter. If you cannot experience a White House Christmas firsthand, then you can at least live vicariously through the gifts from the First Ladies in this memorable effort from Coleen Christian Burke.
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