What the White House Looks Like for Christmas
2023-11-28
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1U.S. first lady Jill Biden wants everyone who visits the White House around Christmas to feel like a kid again.
2On Monday, Biden held a gathering to show the White House Christmas decorations.
3"Magic, Wonder and Joy" is the theme this year. It will be the Bidens' third Christmas holiday in the White House.
4"Each room on display is designed to capture the...delight and imagination of our childhoods," the first lady said.
5She also thanked some 300 people who volunteered to decorate the White House.
6There are oversized holiday candies and other sweets in the hallway.
7There is a Santa Clause with eight reindeer suspended near the entrance.
8Throughout two floors of the public area of the White House are reminders from the poem popularly known as 'Twas the Night Before Christmas.
9The U.S. Library of Congress helped with copies of the poem from the past 200 years.
10The traditional gingerbread White House includes a large sugar cookie copy of the book opened to a page that says, "Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night."
11The book contains 40 sheets of sugar cookie dough.
12Another 40 sheets of gingerbread dough are used for the house with 14 kilograms of chocolate and 23 kilograms of royal icing.
13The oversized decorations are meant to bring feelings of joy to children at this time of the year, White House aides said.
14Children of military families were among the first members of the public to see the decorations.
15And they were also treated to an afternoon performance of the Disney musical performance Frozen.
16One of the first Christmas trees visitors will see upon entering the White House is decorated with golden wooden stars.
17The ornaments include the names of fallen service members.
18The official White House Christmas tree is a 5.6-meter-tall tree that stands in its usual place in the Blue Room.
19The tree is decorated with cheerful pictures from across the country.
20A toy train runs around its base.
21The State Dining Room has been turned into Santa's workshop.
22There are workbenches for Santa's helpers, the elves.
23Stools and ladders circle Christmas trees and gifts-in-progress round out the display.
24In the library, the moons and the stars are ready to honor the tradition of bedtime stories.
25The China Room has been turned into a shop of baked goods.
26The Vermeil Room celebrates music with a display of a toy Marine Band.
27In her prepared remarks, the first lady said she knows that magic, wonder and joy can be hard to find, especially as the days grow shorter, the weather turns colder.
28She said, "Our hearts grow heavy in the face of a tumultuous world."
29"But it's in these times, when we are searching for hope and healing, that we need those points of light the most, that we need each other the most," she said.
30"It's in these times that I hope you remember, if even just for a moment or a season, how you saw the world as a child."
31Overall, the White House uses 98 Christmas trees, nearly 34,000 ornaments, over 22,000 bells and more than 350 candles for the display.
32And they are lit with 142,500 lights.
33I'm Faith Pirlo.
1U.S. first lady Jill Biden wants everyone who visits the White House around Christmas to feel like a kid again. 2On Monday, Biden held a gathering to show the White House Christmas decorations. "Magic, Wonder and Joy" is the theme this year. It will be the Bidens' third Christmas holiday in the White House. 3"Each room on display is designed to capture the...delight and imagination of our childhoods," the first lady said. She also thanked some 300 people who volunteered to decorate the White House. 4There are oversized holiday candies and other sweets in the hallway. There is a Santa Clause with eight reindeer suspended near the entrance. 5Throughout two floors of the public area of the White House are reminders from the poem popularly known as 'Twas the Night Before Christmas. The U.S. Library of Congress helped with copies of the poem from the past 200 years. 6The traditional gingerbread White House includes a large sugar cookie copy of the book opened to a page that says, "Merry Christmas to all, and to all a good night." The book contains 40 sheets of sugar cookie dough. Another 40 sheets of gingerbread dough are used for the house with 14 kilograms of chocolate and 23 kilograms of royal icing. 7The oversized decorations are meant to bring feelings of joy to children at this time of the year, White House aides said. Children of military families were among the first members of the public to see the decorations. And they were also treated to an afternoon performance of the Disney musical performance Frozen. 8One of the first Christmas trees visitors will see upon entering the White House is decorated with golden wooden stars. The ornaments include the names of fallen service members. 9The official White House Christmas tree is a 5.6-meter-tall tree that stands in its usual place in the Blue Room. The tree is decorated with cheerful pictures from across the country. A toy train runs around its base. 10The State Dining Room has been turned into Santa's workshop. There are workbenches for Santa's helpers, the elves. Stools and ladders circle Christmas trees and gifts-in-progress round out the display. 11In the library, the moons and the stars are ready to honor the tradition of bedtime stories. The China Room has been turned into a shop of baked goods. The Vermeil Room celebrates music with a display of a toy Marine Band. 12In her prepared remarks, the first lady said she knows that magic, wonder and joy can be hard to find, especially as the days grow shorter, the weather turns colder. She said, "Our hearts grow heavy in the face of a tumultuous world." 13"But it's in these times, when we are searching for hope and healing, that we need those points of light the most, that we need each other the most," she said. "It's in these times that I hope you remember, if even just for a moment or a season, how you saw the world as a child." 14Overall, the White House uses 98 Christmas trees, nearly 34,000 ornaments, over 22,000 bells and more than 350 candles for the display. And they are lit with 142,500 lights. 15I'm Faith Pirlo. 16Darlene Superville reported this for the Associated Press. Hai Do adapted it for VOA Learning English. 17__________________________________________________ 18Words in This Story 19decoration -n. an object or ornament that is used to make a place more attractive and interesting 20theme -v. the main subject or repeated idea that is shown with objects in a place or with words in a piece of writing 21delight -n. a feeling of happiness 22tumultuous -adj. involving violence, confusion and disorder 23We want to hear from you. 24Our comment policy is here.