This all started when I was a child so we can all blame my mom and dad for this. As a young child the holidays were always really important to my mom, my dad and even my grandparents who lived with us in the rebuilt garage. For me it was just the “norm” to have my grandparents around, and now looking back at it, I wouldn’t have changed it for anything. Every holiday in our house was a big event. Starting with New Years Day, Easter, 4th of July, Thanksgiving, Birthdays, Anniversaries, and anything in between, nothing was too big or too small; we did them all. Then comes the “Big One”, Christmas Celebrations, which in our house started earlier in December. The week after Thanksgiving my parents and my grandparents would all stand at the base of the attic ladder as my dad brought down all the boxes of decorations. My two sisters and I, during our younger years, were not allowed to go in the attic during the “search and recovery” time of getting the Christmas boxes because it was dads’ favorite thing to do. I have to tell everyone that the attic was huge and you could stand up and walk straight across it! I can still remember like it was yesterday that attic door being pulled down and smelling that smell from all the boxes of Christmas decorations….even then I knew my love for decorating was greater than most. It’s in my heart and soul both as a young boy and even more now as an adult. That is what started my love for the holidays.

Now some thirty plus years later I have a full family of my own with 3 of the most beautiful daughters anyone could have ever wished for. We too have that wonderfully familiar pull down attic door where we store all the indoor holiday decorations and the proud tradition of retrieving the boxes is now mine. Since we have acquired a much bigger love for the holidays than most people, and that’s putting it lightly, it takes a full 12 hour day plus 5 people working nonstop just the decorate the inside of the house. It’s probably one of the most enjoyable times of the year. We all stop our crazy lives and put the time aside to do this as a family. The holidays in our house, like many others I’m sure, are full of fast paced but well organized mayhem, who could ask for anything more. The ending result is the most enjoyable memory a family can have.

For over 15 years now I have always had a love for decorating the outside of my home, wherever it has been. Since we have bought our own home 11 years ago, I have expanded that love to whole other level, well maybe several levels. Some would even go as far as to calling it an obsession. Me, I say Bah-Humbug, there are never enough lights to make my house twinkle. So now it takes a crew of three to four people, 7 days 12 hours a day to set it all up. Well maybe it’s a little much.

Well now I will give you the “why I do what I do”. I love to make people of all ages both young and old smile, laugh and maybe even sing a little. Or just brighten their day in some way, to share a small moment in time that would bring any adult back to that time of being a kid again. To give to others in a small way what I wish for everyone, Not something you can buy in the mall or wrap in pretty wrapping paper and tuck neatly under the tree just a "Simple Wish", A Christmas Wish! The love of the holiday season and the joy of sharing it.

I do what I can for others; it’s really not for me at all. Sounds crazy, I know. So all this being said, we the DeWeil family, are proud and would be honored to share our love for the holiday season with all of you. Please feel welcome to visit as many times as you like, bring as many friends, family or loved ones as you would like. Just come and see! We call it, “Christmas On Manhattan”! Thanks to my three daughters and my wife, our display has its name.