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Plants and collections add cheer to farmhouse on Milton Christmas walk

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Photo by Bill Olmsted

The home of Patty and Burnie Bailey on W. Madison Ave. in Milton is on the 2008 Christmas walk.

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Photo by Bill Olmsted

The dining room of the Bailey home is setup for an elegant tea. The home is on the 2008 Christmas walk in Milton.

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Photo by Bill Olmsted

Since Patty Bailey operates Patty's Plants in Milton, it seems natural that gardening tools would have a place in her Christmas decorating. The home is on the 2008 Christmas walk in Milton.

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Photo by Bill Olmsted

A variety of toy rocking horses accent a bookshelf in the Bailey home on Madison Ave.. The home is on the 2008 Christmas walk in Milton.

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Photo by Bill Olmsted

A collection of nativity scenes starts on the Bailey family piano and stretches onto other peices of furniture. The home is on the 2008 Christmas walk in Milton.

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Photo by Bill Olmsted

An antique cabinet in the Bailey home is outfitted for the Christmas holiday. The home is on the 2008 Christmas walk in Milton.

MILTON — Stepping into Patty and Burnie Bailey's Milton house is like coming home for the holidays.

Knick-knacks—some Christmas-themed and some not—peep out from every countertop, cabinet and wall.

The cheery home at 305 W. Madison Ave. on Sunday will be part of the annual Milton Area Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Tourism Christmas Walk.

"It's not a fancy-shmancy home, but it's homey," Patty said.

Patty will be busy this weekend. Her business, Patty's Plants, will be part of MACCIT's "holiday shop-hop" Friday through Sunday, and she will be letting hundreds of visitors troop through her 1895 farmhouse.

As expected for the owner of a plant business, Patty filled the house with poinsettias, ivy and pine wreathes for the event.

Visitors also will see Patty's many collections, from teapots to nativity scenes to perfume bottles. She even has a "tea tree," a miniature Christmas tree her mom made hung with teabags and tiny teacups and planted in a teapot.

They will start in the dining room, where Patty has set the table for a formal Christmas tea, with Santa figurines and portraits of ancestors keeping watch.

They'll move on to the living room, where they can see the family's traditional Christmas tree and a collection of nativity scenes. Among the unusual sets are a tiny plastic one with 1-inch figures and two placed in Ukrainian blown eggs.

"Over the years, people gave them to me, so I kind of just collect them," Patty said.

She calls the kitchen and garden room the "fun rooms," and visitors will have plenty of bric-a-brac to look at there, too.

"It's very eclectic," Patty said.

Here are the other homes on the tour:

-- Betty and Robert Albrecht, 46 Morgan St. The home will feature a nutcracker collection and three Christmas trees with themes of traditional, homemade ornaments and teddy bears.

-- Karen and Cliff Hall, 727 E. High St. This 1919 house is decorated for a traditional Christmas, complete with stockings hung by the fireplace, a Christmas village and several Christmas trees. The second floor is decorated as "Christmas through the eyes of a child."

-- Woodridge Homes, 847 Tower Hill Drive. This new construction home includes a collection of Santa Clauses and decorated Christmas trees.

-- Brandon and Jennifer Vohs, 23 Front St. This 100-year-old house, completely redone inside and out, will feature traditional country decorations.

-- Terry and Joe Williamson and Hannah Anderson, 501 College St., upper apartment. This former Milton College dorm, built in 1857, now houses Goodrich Hall Antiques. The upper apartment is home to Terry and Joe Williamson and their daughter, Hannah Anderson.

IF YOU GO

What: Milton Area Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Tourism Christmas Walk

When: 3 to 8 p.m. Sunday

Where: Six homes in Milton: 46 Morgan St., 727 E. High St., 847 Tower Hill Drive, 23 Front St., 501 College St. Upper and 305 W. Madison Ave.

Cost: $6. Tickets are available in advance at First Community Bank, Bank of Milton, Milton Savings Bank, M&I Bank, The Red Rooster, Goodrich Hall and The Gathering Place. They're also available at the participating houses the day of the event.

More activities: Several other holiday activities are going on in Milton this weekend:

-- The Gathering Place, 715 Campus St., is holding its annual Hot Dogs With Santa from 4 to 8 p.m. Sunday.

-- Residents can participate in a holiday shop hop all weekend. Anyone who gets a card stamped at seven of 12 participating Milton stores will be entered to win a gift basket valued at $200.

To learn more: Call MACCIT at (608) 868-6222 or visit www.maccit.com.