Welcome To Our Home...

...for a little christmas tour. this year is even more bittersweet because it will be the last christmas we spend in our beautiful 100 year old house. and although we feel very blessed, there is still a bit of sadness knowing in a month we will be leaving this home in which we have shared so many memories.

the beautiful fresh wreath at the head of the post hangs on the outside of our transom door. it was made by some really talented friends of ours. isn't it gorgeous? you can see it from the outside but it's not actually outside. let's just say that it wouldn't make it one night outside without someone, er, helping themself to it.

here is what is on the inside of the door......with it's matching swag hanging over the arch into the living room.i made both of these our first year in this house.

this is our bush, i mean tree, in the living room.for some reason i prefer the fatter the better shape for a tree. it must be a reflection on my diet and exercise plan or lack thereof.

and here are the new ornaments for 2007 for each of our children.

they each receive a new ornament every year. it is given to them when we put up our tree. each child has a theme that their ornaments stick to. for our oldest, it is crosses. her middle name is also "joy" so we try to find one that incorporates that too. our little boy gets puppies. our younger daughter gets nativity scenes and we get an angel to remember our little one we lost. so this might prompt the question..."why the penguin?" well, hallmark is sold out of the fifth christmas ornament for our son. so we got him this little penguin to hang on the tree until hopefully we can locate one to finish out his set.

and here is our nativity under the tree.with an empty mangerand without mary and joseph...because obviously they are still traveling to bethlehem...from the windowsill on the other side of the room. :) mary and joseph will arrive on the morning of christmas eve and our children will lovingly place Jesus in the manger when we arrive home from mass in the evening on christmas eve. on christmas day we will get out the wise men and they will journey day to day throughout our house until they reach the nativity on the feast of the epiphany.

as you begin to go upstairs you see our stockings and christmas cards on the stairs.on christmas eve after the kids have gone to bed i weave white lights through the evergreen garland as a reminder for them on christmas morning that all things have been made new because Christ, our light, has come into the world.

then upstairs the children have their tree.
usually it has their nativity under it, but that is strewn about the floor. and don't even get me started on the broken pieces i found today. it's playmobil people. isn't that supposed to be indestructible or something?

well, i hope you enjoyed the tour of our home and learning a bit about our christmas traditions. may the Christ Child find a loving place in your heart this season and all year through.