Holidays at Hartwood
Dingbaums open their home to celebrate holidays with the community
By Lauren Jackson
The Dingbaums have always enjoyed celebrating the sentimentality of the holidays. Now in their third year of living in Hartselle, they are bringing new traditions for their family and the community.
This year will be the second year Shannon and Tobey Dingbaum sell live Christmas trees, following their first time this fall to offer pumpkins and a haunted house.
When the Dingbaums moved to Hartselle three years ago, it was the space and charm of Hartwood Estates and the community that drew them to the 1911 home. “What really brought us here was the school system – this place and the sense of community,” Tobey said.
Although the home needed renovation and repairs, it seemed to be the perfect place for the Dingbaums. They have renovated nine other homes and said they have always enjoyed the challenge, doing all of the work themselves. “We have a soft spot for old homes that need love,” Shannon said.
With their 12 acres of land, the Dingbaums wanted to share their holiday spirit with the community. They said they hope to be able to share the old traditions and magic of the season. “We always wanted the nostalgic feeling of picking out Christmas trees, and we really wanted to bring that back,” Tobey said.
Last year, the Dingbaums ordered 225 trees for Christmas. They had a delivery service for those without cars to take the trees, and a charity night for local children.
The Dingbaums will also have wreaths and fresh garland. In addition to bringing back the tradition of live trees, Tobey said he enjoyed meeting others from the community. “The community came out and supported us, and we met quite a few people,” Tobey said.
With the holiday festivities as well as renovations, the Dingbaums said they celebrate slightly differently. Tobey said things take different priorities, and the focus changes, but they enjoy being able to celebrate with the community. “We love it. We love being able share with everybody,” Tobey said.
Tobey and Shannon live on Hartwood Estates with five of their seven children, their four cats and one dog. The family moved because of Tobey’s job and began the Christmas trees as a way to create family fun. “We wanted there to be things for families here in town,” Shannon said.
This year the family also began the pumpkins and haunted house at the request of their son, Caleb. A senior at Hartselle High School, Caleb wanted to celebrate Halloween with the haunted house in particular. “With him graduating, we wanted to do this before he goes,” Shannon said.
In addition to the holiday festivities, Hartwood Estates also welcomes various activities for local groups. Shannon said there have been Boy Scout camping trips in the area behind their home as well as movie nights for different groups. In the future the Dingbaums hope to introduce more holiday festivities at Valentine’s Day and Easter and add to the Halloween and Christmas events.
Shannon said they have goals of adding hayrides and expanding the haunted house to go through more of their property. “We hope the community comes out and supports us so we can continue to grow,” Shannon said.
