AUSTIN, Texas – Twinkly light displays and festive decorations are always a treat to see around the holiday season. But one local couple takes Christmas decorating to a whole new level.
- Every room of the house gets decorated
- Only puts up the display every other year
“We love doing it, we love putting it up," said Austin resident Stephen Watkins.
Twenty-five years ago, Watkins and his husband Michael Rodriguez started collecting Christmas decorations and haven’t stopped since.
“I always loved putting up the Christmas tree when I was a kid, it was always very exciting. And then as an adult I just started with a couple of ornaments and got a couple more," said Watkins. “Every ornament when I take it out of the box I think about it in a minute, think about where I got it, who gave it to me. It just, each ornament tells a little story to me."
While Watkins collects ornaments, Rodriguez collects and designs village displays.
“For me, I think it has to tell a little bit of a story, it has to sort of fit in. In this particular village, I made these mountains on the side so that it could sort of have a flow to it. You have a winter wonderland, you have some places that are not snowed in," said Rodriguez. "The river represents the Riverwalk in San Antonio, that was my inspiration for that.”
Every other year, they put up the decorations that now fill every room of their house.
“Everybody seems to like the North Pole village in the bathroom, they think that’s unique," said Rodriguez. "It’s just something we’ve done, we needed space so we put it in the bathroom, there’s no other place to put it. So I don’t think I have really truly a favorite, I enjoy all of it.”
It’s something they look forward to enjoying every other year.
“I'll come and sit in the living room before I go to work in the morning with my cup of coffee and I'll turn on this aspect of the house, this part of the house, and sit and just enjoy it for a while," said Rodriguez.
“Even real introverted friends come and they're totally comfortable at the party because there's plenty to talk about, or they can just wander around and not have to talk to anybody and they always come back and they always enjoy it," said Watkins.
It certainly helps spread the holiday spirit.
“You know our home is your home, you're welcome to come in and, hopefully, people leave with a good experience and good feeling when they leave, and they will want to return," said Rodriguez.