a little holiday spirit. Help! I am severely lacking in the spirit department this year! Not only has my shopping been limited, this week I had a sick kid home the first two days and EVERYBODY home these last three days for snow days. Makes it a smidge difficult to go shopping when you have kids big enough to read and understand with you! I do remember being able to buy Henry's presents right in front of him for quite awhile...no more...darn smart kids! And the snow, while absolutely beautiful, entertaining and peaceful all in one, has hampered my ability to get to a store and is messing with my UPS driver...so anxiety is running high around here that we don't have a repeat of last year's tragedy. (For those of you who don't know, last year ALL of Henry's gifts got stuck in customs on their way here from the Lego factory in Denmark....a mother's worst Christmas nightmare, though amazingly he was fine with the letter he received from Lego explaining the whole situation...what a guy!) Anyway, after baking some cookies and watching a few holiday movies, I decided to try my hand at photographing the Christmas tree and some of my favorite ornaments...now while this might not excite you all greatly, I am really doing this to help me get in the mood! I'm going to sing some Bing Crosby while I finish this post....feel free to sing along because you know "the best way to spread Christmas cheer is to sing loud for everyone to hear" (it helps if you sound like Jovie from the movie Elf).
Our poor tree gets wedged into the corner between the couches but I do love the lights reflecting in the window. Also, if you look closely, the bottom of our tree is bare in an effort to dog/baby proof the tree
Each year the kids get to pick an ornament to add to their collection...the bikini flamingo....Annie's choice for the year.
Madelyn's ornament. You won't be seeing Henry's choice this year, as he couldn't find an ornament to suit his fancy....no Gothic cathedral ornaments anywhere! Can you believe it?!
My new ornament from a fun ornament exchange this year.
An early choice of Henry's and a fun one to photograph!
A third grade gift....love it!
A favorite inherited from my mom's collection...lots of history....it came with us all the way from Indonesia!
Another family tradition...my great aunt crocheted these ornaments for years and then some of the women in my family took a class and learned to make them. This one is courtesy of my lovely & talented sister! (I had a newborn when they all took the class, so I missed out.)
This is the one that Madelyn picked out for Annie for her first Christmas. Annie was 2 months old and Madelyn was 2 1/2 years old and in her purple, sparkly phase!
My little angel! Preschool family gift from this year.
Just like this one...no back story...just pretty.
And finally, I shot of me....see the big, black spot? That's my camera! Alright, are you done singing? I think we will be having a white Christmas. I think I will spend today crafting something with the kids and maybe wrapping a few presents! Hope you all are feeling ready and excited for this next week of fun! Merry Christmas!