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Last holiday for Biden White House celebrates 'a season of peace and light'

In total, there are 83 Christmas trees throughout the White House adorned with approximately 9,810 feet of ribbon and over 28,125 ornaments.
The Diplomatic Reception Room of the White House
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For their last holiday season in the White House, President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden decked the halls with a theme of "A Season of Peace and Light."

When guests first enter the White House for holiday tours, they're greeted by a massive, rotating starlight above the East Wing.

The first tree on the tour is dedicated to Gold Star Families. It's made of six oversized and stacked stars representing the branches of the military. Names of fallen service members are written on gold star ornaments on the four accompanying Christmas trees around the room, according to the White House website.

Brass-colored bells suspended from archways down the East Colonnade surround guests with the "peaceful sounds of the holiday season." The White House Library is a forest of vintage ceramic Christmas trees.

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The ceiling of the East Room is wrapped in a canopy of reflective medallions that mimic the feeling of a peaceful snowfall. This is where guests will find the Nativity scene that has been displayed during every White House holiday season since 1967.

In the Blue Room, guests will find the official White House Christmas Tree, a Fraser fir from North Carolina, on display in the center of a whimsical carousel. Every year the room's chandelier is removed to accommodate the tall Christmas trees.

Military families from the USS Delaware and the USS Gabrielle Giffords, Navy vessels that First Lady Biden sponsors, made dazzling paper garlands that wrap around the State Dining Room.

One of the most anticipated features every year is the Gingerbread White House. The sugary replica features a large starburst and a cheerful scene of ice skaters this year.

The White House said the gingerbread masterpiece took 25 sheets of gingerbread dough, 10 sheets of sugar cookie dough, five pounds of pastillage, 45 pounds of chocolate, 50 pounds of royal icing and 10 pounds of gum paste to come to life.

In total, there are 83 Christmas trees throughout the White House adorned with approximately 9,810 feet of ribbon and over 28,125 ornaments. Over 165,075 lights decorate the trees, garlands, wreaths and displays.

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"It has been the honor of our lives to serve as your President and First Lady. Our hope is for the Nation to be blessed with the peace and light of the holiday season. We wish you a Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays," the president and first lady wrote in the welcome letter for the commemorative White House Holiday Guide.

It took over 300 dedicated volunteers from across the country a full week to decorate the inside and outside of the White House, who the first lady thanked during a special event to mark the holiday season.

The first lady invited National Guard families to be the first to experience this year's magical decorations and had their children on stage at the special event.

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