It's beginning...

To look a lot like Christmas.

We finally got our tree up this week, Jeff brought it up from the basement and ensured there were no mice or spiders living in it before assembling it in the family room; he’s the official tree putter-upper.  We kept Clare up a little late so she could watch her first tree go up.  Once it was assembled, and plugged in, she took a look; it was pretty fun to watch her face.  I’m glad the tree already has lights on it; of course they are her favorite part.  I waited until after she went to bed to trim the tree with a few ornaments.  As I was pulling them out of the box I realized just how many we have, we have way more than our one little tree can hold!

 

I hung our stockings with care by the fire; I think they look rather nice. 

I wonder if we’ll get into stockings like we did in my family; I can remember being so excited to open stockings and having our stocking in our specific Christmas morning spot.  The order of stockings on the mantel was Dad, Andrew, Sarah, me, and Mom, there were little nails in the mantle to hang our stockings, the piece of wood holding Sarah’s came out, I wonder if the new owners have discovered that yet.  When Santa arrived and filled our stockings he would put them out on the furniture, they were often overflowing.  My stocking was on the love seat, Sarah and Mom shared the couch while Andrew and Dad had their stockings in the chairs.  We always had some Legos in our stocking, often a magazine subscription (Rolling Stone for Andrew) and frequently a roll of quarters (the year the $1 Sacagawea coins came out we each had a roll – I still have mine).  This year I only have a few things for Jeff’s stocking and one or two things for Clare.  I hope that with future Christmases I can make our stockings as fun and memorable as they were for me.

As for under the tree.  I bought a new tree skirt; I’ve never had one and had been using a towel in previous years, and love my Pottery Barn tree skirt!  So far there are only a few gifts, most are for Clare of course.  I’m slowly, but surely, getting the gifts wrapped and shipped so they can find their way under the appropriate trees around the country.  I’m afraid I’ll be wrapping Jeff’s gifts on Christmas eve, luckily he doesn’t notice the detail in the wrapping so I don’t have to do as nice as job as I do on others.

We’re looking forward to celebrating Clare’s First Christmas.  We will be spending Christmas morning here at home and traveling to Joplin in the afternoon.  I’m sure there will be no shortage of packages for her; she’s been a very good little girl.  I know that she won’t really understand how December 25^th is any different than any other day, but I’m really looking forward to making it special for her.  I hope I make a good Santa for her J