Merry Christmas!

I was so excited to deck the halls this year! That's because for the past four (five?) years I haven't been able to decorate for Christmas. We were either living in our fifth wheel "traveling" (and there really wasn't extra room for a tree) or we were in the middle of remodeling and I didn't want to bother with getting extra decor out that would just get dusty. You can just imagine how much fun it was for me to be able to unload all of my Christmas decor. Some of the items I forgot I even had! Greg knows that sometimes I can get an idea in my head and I will stop at no means to follow through. However, he told me not to buy any additional Christmas decor and to use what we had. I obeyed his orders, only because I figure this means I can buy double the amount of "stuff" the day after Christmas! ;)



I was dying to purchase matching stockings and have all of our names embroidered on the top. But, since I had to stick to the "no purchasing" rule, I had to make due with our old stockings. I did go out and purchase a stocking for Shady and it literally drove me crazy that once I put some treats in her stocking that it didn't hang the "right" way. At least I know not to purchase that particular stocking tomorrow for the whole family!

This may sound silly, but one thing I was really excited about decorating was our mantle. I've never had a mantle before! I was happy to finally put the stocking holders I bought last year to use! However, they were originally brown which I didn't think was festive enough. Luckily we had some silver spray paint on hand, and I think after a few coats they were finally up to par!!!

I had to get pretty creative in decorating the mantle! Luckily I had a strand of pre-lit garland, but I knew that and the stocking holders weren't going to have the look I wanted. I have always loved pine cones, so I posted a question on facebook asking if any of my friends had a pine tree in their yard so I could come and pick some pine cones. Luckily one of my friends did! I gathered as many as I could and when I came home I spray painted some silver, others I used glue to add silver or gold glitter, and others I left in their birthday suits. I decorated with them in several places in the house! Talk about decorating on a budget!

I had a plain cylinder vase on hand that I stuffed with various pine cones as well as a few red bulb ornaments. After I placed that on the mantle, I knew I needed to add a little bit more height to achieve a more desirable affect. I resorted to placing a few pine cones in some martini glasses. I thought it turned out pretty cute, and I was proud of myself for once having my own original decorating idea!

Although my stockings didn't match, my sister happened to give this to me. Pretty cute if you ask me and at least I was able to use it along with the other hodge podge of stockings! After all, Parker can only use this stocking once, right?

Every year I like to buy a Christmas ornament that represents something for the year. Obviously, this little guy fit the bill! It even has a place on the back where I can write in Parkers weight and length. It's safe to say it will be one of my favorites for years to come!

Here are some other snapshots of holiday cheer in our house:



This is a count down to Christmas wall hanging that Greg's grandmother made when he was a little boy. It's the only holiday decoration that Greg had when I married him, and I love how it has such a sweet sentimental value to it. I'm sure Parker will love using it when he gets older.

This is a live wreath that one of my friends gave me for a Christmas present. I've always wanted to have a live Christmas tree, but this was the next best thing!


Parker with his stocking.

He likes chewing on his books rather than flipping through and "reading" them. Today they were extra yummy because Father Christmas brought Parker's second tooth! (Unfortunately it's also causing him to run his first low-grade fever. Poor guy!)


One of the toys we bought him was a box of little squirtable tub toys. We took a starfish out and that proved to be his favorite new toy. We pretty much had to open all the other presents for him because he wouldn't put it down!


We ventured out to The Elks Lodge this morning to join other members for free Tom and Jerrys. This is an eggnog drink that is made with powdered sugar. They were pretty yummy! To continue our festivities, I'm cooking a big, yummy dinner for us to enjoy. The menu consists of ham, sweet potato casserole, broccoli rice casserole, cranberry jello salad, croissants, and a pumpkin roll.

MERRY CHRISTMAS FROM OUR HOUSE TO YOURS!