7 years ago, we lived out east on the opposite side of the United States in the North East. Basically, we like things up north : ). Something we loved about living over there was the history. Everywhere we went there was so much history. While a lot of the towns were sad and barely alive, there were many that kept that beautiful history alive in the past. Our favorite locations were in Palymra New York area that was rich in preserving that history. I loved visiting during Christmas time because of the beautiful and classic homemade decorations. Dried citrus fruit was my favorite and has stuck with me even still.

We had some old oranges in the fridge and instead of wasting them, I decided it was definitely not to early to dry some citrus fruit ornaments. Don't they look so beautiful on our Christmas tree? And speaking of trees, I was happy to receive this Colorado pine from Naturally artificial. It's pre- lit and looks almost like a real tree. Naturally Artificial have such a wonderful variety of trees to choose from, I was very happy with what I selected. But, for me, the best part is that it is pre - lit and only had 3 parts to set up. It literally took me 10 minutes! My kids were pretty shocked. Our old tree was very old and took me forever and was not pre-lit. Hello modern times!

Also, in case your wondering, our faux knit Christmas tree skirt that I made last year is still looking great and I still love it! 

(if using a dehydrator, set at 160 or 200 if it has that setting) Pre-heat oven to 200 degrees. Cut fruit, thinly, crosswise. Place a wire sheet on a baking sheet or use foil (sprayed lightly with oil) on a pan. 

 Arrange fruit in a single layer and let cook for 4 hours until dry. 

Use twine or string to make ornaments or a natural Christmas fruit garland. 

Also, these are still edible!

Use any left over ends of the fruit to make a delicious stove top Christmas potpourri. Add a stick of cinnamon (or powder cinnamon from your spices), some cranberries and apple cores. add a little water and set stove on low. It will make your house smell so good!