Our Christmas Day

Christmas morning!!!  Up early and right to the breakfast table.  This year we decided that it would be a good idea to let the kids open their stockings while we got breakfast ready.

Every Christmas after breakfast Brian reads the Christmas story (from a children's Bible for now).

Sorry it's blurry!! 

Next, to the tree...

Wow!!  Look at all the presents! 

Ella is handing them out.

Lucas, how many gifts are in your pile?  Lots!  5 always means lots!

Ella is VERY excited about her new Lalaloopsy!  She thanked me at least a dozen more times over the next few days!

LEGOS!!!   He really did have a happy face.

Big brother willingly helping Kinslie open her gift.

I love this surprised face!  She was extremely excited about everything she opened for at least a few minutes!

Bubble Bath!!!!   They have been asking for this for a while.

Christmas Morning at church.  My lovely little Christmas kids!

Just a snap shot of the dinner table.

Hope you all had a beautiful Christmas!!!!!

The night before Christmas

 The night before Christmas, and all the gifts are wrapped...

I love the look of all the gifts under the tree just ready and waiting for morning.

The stockings are stuffed.

Notice that Kinslie's doesn't have a name on it...  I wanted to sew their names myself so I started with Ella's and when Lucas saw that Ella's had a name and his didn't he was a little sad so I had to be sure that his had his name on it before Christmas...  Kinslie's still doesn't have a name.  I may have to wait till next year.

Welcome Christmas

Even though I have been listening to Christmas music since the beginning of November, now that it is December Christmas feels very close!  The house and the tree are decorated, shopping is almost done, Christmas cards have started to arrive and it's about time to start baking!  Oh, and I can't wait to do the gift wrapping!
Here are some of the things that make our home feel worm and festive, ready to celebrate the birth of our Lord!

The Tree!

It has to be in the corner this year.  We rearranged our living room a few months ago and this is the only place for it without moving every piece of furniture.  It's actually kind of nice to have it less accessible to Kinslie.  We will just pull the chair on the right away for Christmas day.

The kids really had fun getting out ornaments from the past few years!  I love how sweet and sentimental Lucas gets about this kid of thing.  He's such a sweetheart.

Oh my lovely stockings from Pottery Barn.  I have been waiting for these for years.  Last year Brian let me get one for Ella and Lucas and this year before I had even given it a lot of thought he took me to the store in the mall and said we could pick Kinslie's!  (They are still waiting to have names sewn on them.  I hope to get that done before Christmas arrives.)  Maybe next year we can get the matching ones for Brian and I.

It the small touches are special.  Some Christmas cheer on the window sill over the kitchen sink.  And one of my favorite Antique store finds...  I think it is a couple of buckets from an old grin elevator.  Each season I ad something new to dress it up. 

My Favorite...  The Nativity scene!  In a perfect place, on my favorite piece of furniture, my blue china hutch.   (it's a dumpster find from about 6 years ago!  SCORE!  I'll have to post a picture of the full piece sometime.)

As a child I remember how special it was unwrapping each piece of the Nativity.  It was a pearly blue, ceramic set that my Grandma had made.  And my most favorite part of decorating!  Sweet memories!  I love that we are creating that kind of memories for my own kids now!

I hope your home is feeling Merry and Bright!  Happy Christmas Season!

the Result...

a LITTLE bit of organization...

I got rid of quite a bit from my closet!  It was sad to let go of some clothes that I've had since high school but really... even if I could fit into them, they really aren't my style now.  So away they went along with lots of other junk.  Other things have just been relocated.  I'm happy with the result!!!

My lovely closet...  look! there's even an empty spot on the shelf!  woohoo!

my favorite: my new shoe rack!  You can never have to many flats!

a new "crafting corner".  It's quite tiny but since I'm not currently working on a scrapbook it's okay for now. The drawers still need organized but everything is out of the way for now.

I definitely enjoy being able to see all my clothes and finding things without digging! 

What shall my next mission be?...

.

I'm just gona do it...

I have hesitated to post recently because I think that I have to have lots of time to sit down ans write a ton or lots of time to prepare pictures for posting etc.  But this Sunday afternoon, the kids are napping, Brian is catching a quick nap in front of the football game and I decided it was just going to get something done.  My task to complete:  "the closet"  my clothes closet has become the catch-all for anything that doesn't have a place.  We don't have much storage space in this town home so every little corner of the closets gets used.  But it has started to feel very cramped in there.  So I'm going to do as a friend suggested...  Sort with this in mind....  "place it", "pass it" or "pitch it".  So since I am "just gona do it" rather than sit and waste my afternoon, I also decided to just post it also.   I'll try to remember to let you know how it goes!
  ~ Have a blessed Lords day all my loved ones!