Deck the Halls

I love this time of year. I know for many it's hectic, but for us life slows down quite a bit. I get my shopping done in November. School wraps up the first week of December with the kids finishing up on their own during the second week. Clubs, classes and activities finish up early in December too. Then the fun begins.

The fancy tree goes up in the living room amidst carols and cocoa. The trimmings are pink, cream and gold. It's a Victorian tree with ornaments we've been collecting for 17 years.

I love the Dickens Village under the tree. My mom and husband have given me all the pieces. Ladybug loves helping me set up the village each year. We have fun talking about the period and imagining what it would have been like to live during that time.

The tree ornaments include parasols, ballet slippers, china tea cups, angels, Victorian dolls, pearl beaded stars and pink and cream floral bows.

The family tree goes up in the great room with a classic Christmas movie playing in the background and bowls of buttery popcorn nearby.

Most of these ornaments are ones that the kids have made or ones they have been given. Some of Bookworm's favorites include her polar bears and her snowmen. Ladybug loves her angels and Busy Bee loves his hockey skates.

My favorites are all the ones the kids have made and the ones they buy me each year. I appreciate the effort they make to find just the right one.

The manger scene gets put up without Baby Jesus in the manger and we keep the wiseman off to the side.

The kids take turns putting Jesus in the manger on Christmas morning. We also move the wiseman a little closer each day after Christmas to symbolize the Wiseman's travel to the Christ Child.

We usually read a nativity story or 2. This year we read one we bought at the Creation Museum last year. The kids arrange and rearrange the manger scene frequently throughout the season.

The dining room gets decked out too. I love the fresh burgundy poinsetta. It goes great in there. I made a pair of window swags for the corners of the window. I love the brown, cream and icy blue together.

One of the fun parts of blogging is learning about other's Christmas traditions, family recipes, craft ideas and heirloom recipes.

I have several ideas that I want to try out for next year that I got from other blogs. The Jesse tree is one I am planning on implementing. The other is to have a friends party that has a service focus. What traditions do you hold dear? How do you hold up Christ during this time of year?