Saturday, May 4, 2024

First Lady Jill Biden unveils this year's White House Christmas decorations : NPR

white house christmas tour 2023

On Wednesday, the first lady will unveil a holiday ice rink on the White House lawn. Even though we are very common people, we felt special because we had this opportunity. The Secret Service officer checked our IDs and cross-checked the master list to verify if we were indeed on "the nice list." Three additional screenings later and we were ready to enter the White House.

The Cross Hall

Jill Biden on Monday unveiled this year's White House holiday decorations, themed around the idea of childlike wonder and featuring some 14,975 feet of ribbon, over 350 candles, and more than 33,892 ornaments. We’ll see everything from the Gold Star Tree honoring fallen US service members to the famous White House Christmas Tree in the Blue Room. Your little ones might be especially excited to see the corridor filled with letters to Santa, stamped and ready to be sent to the North Pole. In the Grand Foyer, we’ll even get to see Santa’s magical red sleigh with his nine reindeer suspended in mid-air.

Other holiday sights in Washington, DC

The 2023 White House Holiday Display is designed to capture the pure, unfiltered delight and imagination of childhood, and encourage visitors to reflect on this time of year with hearts open to the “Magic, Wonder, and Joy” of the season. The Vice President has long been focused on ensuring that minority, rural, and low-income communities have the capital and resources they need to thrive and support small businesses. Last year, she announced that Treasury’s CDFI Fund has awarded over $1.73 billion in grants to 603 Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) across the country.

Drew & Jonathan Scott Talk Family Holiday Plans, HGTV White House Christmas - Collider

Drew & Jonathan Scott Talk Family Holiday Plans, HGTV White House Christmas.

Posted: Fri, 22 Dec 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]

Wake up, sleeping beauties. It's almost Met Gala time

If you are a citizen of a foreign country, please contact your embassy in Washington, D.C. This year’s official White House Christmas Tree was presented to the First Lady by siblings Amber Scott and Alex Church of Cline Church Nursery, the 2023 Grand Champion Grower in the National Christmas Tree Association’s annual contest. As the largest room in the White House, the East Room has hosted public receptions, ceremonies, bill signings, and other memorable occasions.

About the White House Historical Association

We love the holidays, and -- politics and partisanship aside -- admire the elegance and importance of the White House. We knew visiting while it is decked in its holiday finest would be a memorable treat. The joyful anticipation of the holidays is front and center in the East Room, with Advent calendars counting down the days to Christmas.

Request tickets now: How to visit the White House at Christmastime

In 1961, the nonprofit, nonpartisan White House Historical Association was established to support her vision to preserve and share the Executive Mansion’s legacy for generations to come. Supported entirely by private resources, the Association’s mission is to assist in the preservation of the state and public rooms, fund acquisitions for the White House permanent collection, and educate the public on the history of the White House. Since its founding, the Association has given more than $115 million to the White House in fulfillment of its mission. After delivering a holiday message, Dr. Biden invited the children of National Guard families to a special performance by the cast of the North American tour of Disney’s stage musical, Frozen. Throughout the White House grounds are 98 Christmas trees, almost 34,000 ornaments, 72 wreaths and about 142,000 holiday lights. Ninety-eight Christmas trees, nearly 34,000 ornaments, over 22,000 bells and more than 350 candles were used in the décor, according to the White House.

Inspired by the 200th anniversary of the publication of ’Twas the Night Before Christmas, this year’s gingerbread White House features a recreation of this storied tale. The display includes a sugar cookie replica of the famous book, as well as Santa’s sleigh flying above the White House grounds. This magical poem has delighted children for 200 years, with families across the world gathering together for generations to recite the lyrical lines by memory. Whether sewing a costume for the Christmas pageant, stringing popcorn for the tree, or fashioning homemade ornaments, the holidays are a time for creativity and imagination. One of the first Christmas trees visitors will see is decorated with wooden gold star ornaments engraved with the names of fallen service members. One of the first Christmas trees visitors see after entering the White House is decorated with wooden gold star ornaments engraved with the names of fallen service members.

White House Holidays

white house christmas tour 2023

It also includes Gilbert Stuart’s portrait of George Washington, which First Lady Dolley Madison helped save in 1814 when the White House was about to be set aflame during the War of 1812.

During the holidays, the Cross Hall features the official White House Menorah, created in 2021 by the White House Executive Residence Carpentry Shop. The menorah was constructed using wood that was removed more than seventy years ago during the Truman-era renovation of the White House. The stunning tree celebrates cheerful scenes, landscapes, and neighborhoods from all across the country, with names of every state, territory, and the District of Columbia, showcased throughout the decor. With bright colors and three-dimensional elements, guests will gaze in wonder as they are taken on a delightful adventure around the tree. A replica of a vintage passenger train, on loan from the Train Collectors Association, magically weaves through the tree’s base.

The Library honors the tradition and magic of bedtime stories during the holiday season. Golden moons and shimmering stars are suspended above, with treasured holiday storybooks throughout the peaceful scene. Santa and his sleigh are seen through the window, flying past a full moon on his way to the White House. The marble arches of the Ground Floor Corridor are sprinkled with holiday messages sent from Americans across the country to the President and First Lady. Letters to Santa Claus are magically flying in and out of vintage mail boxes, ready to be sent to the North Pole with a stamp and a wish.

Congressional Tour Coordinators will be able to submit tour requests beginning Monday, March 21, 2022. As always, one of the highlights of the decor is in the Blue Room, where the official White House Christmas Tree stands on display. This year’s tree is an 18½ foot Fraser Fir that stands floor to ceiling, and requires the annual removal of the Blue Room’s chandelier in order to accommodate its full height.

This year's decor also features several nods to the 1823 poem and book "'Twas the Night Before Christmas," now celebrating its 200th year. In addition to vintage editions on display along the ground floor corridor, the book will be featured in sugar-cookie form alongside the traditional gingerbread White House. WASHINGTON (AP) — Step inside the White House during the holidays by walking beneath the branches of a Christmas tree.

White House Christmas decorations: First Lady Jill Biden shows off 20243s theme of joy, wonder and magic - WLS-TV

White House Christmas decorations: First Lady Jill Biden shows off 20243s theme of joy, wonder and magic.

Posted: Sun, 24 Dec 2023 08:00:00 GMT [source]

The White House released a fact sheet and was allowing the news media to see all the trees, lights and ornaments before the first lady's event. National Guard families, who were joining the first lady as part of Joining Forces, her White House initiative to show appreciation for military families, were among the first members of the public to see the decorations. The official Christmas tree, an 18-foot-tall Fraser Fir from Fleetwood, N.C., stands in the center of the oval Blue Room during a media preview of the 2023 holiday decorations at the White House on Monday.

While we don’t cover all available credit cards, our editorial team creates and maintains all of the analysis of these cards, and our content is not influenced nor subject to review by any credit card company, bank or partner prior to (or after) publication. Please view our advertising policy and product review methodology for more information. As the precious few days passed from our approval to our departure, we held our breath that our tour would not be affected by a Christmas cancellation. Even as we approached the tour entrance, we kept one eye out for unusual Secret Service movement and the other eye scanning our phone looking for breaking news that might bear bad tidings. Fortunately, we were greeted by an open gate and a welcoming gesture and into the line we went. But, as we have discovered in the past, wanting to visit the White House and getting to visit the White House are two very different things.

The décor also features likenesses of family cat Willow and dog Commander, who was recently sent away after multiple incidents of biting Secret Service personnel. The United States Botanic Garden had a beautiful display of scale model monuments made entirely of plant material. The same artistic skill and methods were used to build the famous American train depots that were central to the garden's themed "All Aboard" model train exhibit. We were the last two to leave for the day, and we lingered and looked as much as we could. We could have easily spent longer reflecting on all we had seen, but the business of the White House had to go on.

No comments:

Post a Comment

How to Save for a House: Tips to Save Money for Down Payment

Table Of Content How much house can you afford? Let’s figure it out The Bankrate promise Automate Your Savings Steps to Saving for a Down Pa...