Wednesday, December 30, 2009

holiday highlights

It's been a whirlwind few weeks for us as I'm sure it has been for everyone! It seems like Christmas was just here all of the sudden whether we were ready or not.

Ben's mom had hip replacement surgery two weeks ago so we've been trying to help out with dinners and "elder care" fairly often. Anne supervised while I made our holiday tablecloth and it was nice to have her guidance and it was a good distraction for her while she lays and heals.


We had a quiet Christmas Eve at our house after Ben got off work. We feasted of Parmesan & macadamia nut crusted salmon (a dish we first ate at Duke's in Malibu), asparagus and mashed sweet potatoes. I set the table with our china (the 3rd or 4th time we've used it in 6 years I think) too so that was a treat! We then headed off to church.

We celebrated Christmas morning at our house and then headed to Ben's parents house for Christmas brunch, etc. Michael and Abigail arrived Saturday so we celebrated Christmas Part Three on Sunday with my family. Abigail (now 5) is quite the little girl. She loves coloring, Barbies, mermaids and is a very good little traveler with daddy (a 9 hour ride from PA to IL).
Ben's sister Sarah and boyfriend Scott arrived Sunday after travel delays driving in from CO. We celebrated Christmas Part Four with them on Monday night.

Everyone departed for home today which is always sad so we're getting back to "normal" and prepping for the beginning of a new decade. 2009 has come and gone! Hello, 2010!

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

it's beginning to look a lot like Christmas

The balsam fir in all his glory!

My attempt at an artistic outdoor decoration. Our local garden shop inspired me...my version looks a little bit like their display...ha!

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

beautiful balsam fir

Picking out our Christmas tree usually requires a few tours around the nursery examining multiple candidates. Our trip on Saturday was over in minutes, however, because we bought the first tree we looked at. He's a 6ft plus beauty -- nice and full, and smells delicious.

So we've got the tree up at home, but he's yet to be decorated. I'll be sure to post a photo once he's adorned.

Now if only holiday cards were as easy...

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

holiday preparations

I've officially taken down my fall/Thanksgiving items around the house, and now I am starting to get excited about decorating for Christmas. We're going to get our tree this weekend, which is always fun. We've decided we need a tree that's a little bigger than the tree we got last year...I'm sure the perfect tree is out there for us.

I know a lot of people who have themed trees, but ours is just a hodgepodge of ornaments we like...from our childhoods, gifts from our wedding, ornaments we've purchased each other in recent years. It's nothing extraordinary to look at, but very special and meaningful to us. I can't wait to decorate!

Our dining room window will be getting a new piece of stained glass I purchased at our Festival of Trees fundraiser. I'm sure there are a few more items still to be purchased. This is our third Christmas in our house, which is hard to believe, but there are still things we'd like...maybe a few outdoor decorations for this year.

Tell me your favorite Christmas decoration. Maybe I need a version of it at my house too!