CHRISTmas Continued

So. Getting the tree...

We always go to Motley's Tree Farm. Like since Noah was a little toddler. It's tradition. The tree farm, however, has grown. As our kids have. As our FaMilY has! That's both good and bad (regarding the tree farm, that is). The good of it is that more and more people are enjoying their own tree-finding traditions. The bad of it is that it feels a little "sold out." Just a little too big. Just a little less, "We're so glad y'all are back again this year" and a little more like "I don't have time to say hello...excuse me while I go herd all these folks over to the pig races."

Besides just the trees, here's what USED to be there.

There's an electric train behind that window.

"Santa's Workshop" display

Ah, life was so simple then.

Now there's this...

and this...

and this...

and don't forget this...

It's crazy!!!

Well, anyway, that's neither here nor there. We got there, which is always half the battle.

We partook of the roasted peanuts and hot chocolate.

We tried (sometimes in vain) to keep our eyes on all four children running around the farm. (Shall I mention here that at one point in time Noah decided to hop on the hay ride and not tell us??)

We observed the farm animals.

We watched pig races.

See the kid beside Noah? Yeah, my thoughts exactly...

(I'm still not sure how pig races tie in to CHRISTmas, but we watched them nonetheless.)

And then we got serious and started the HUNT.

And do you know what we found??!

We found several very nice trees that were already "taken" and scores and scores of VERY small trees. That's what we found. It was so depressing.

But nothing a pen full of chickens and "duck ducks" couldn't cure.

Right, Atticus?

Now here's the weird part.

I happened to have been in Whole Foods the week before and noticed they had a whole slew of Fraser Fir trees for sale out front. (Trees for sale at this particular grocery store is a first.) I had taken note of the price, but really only because there was a nice, large sign providing me with that info. There were some Fraser Firs at Motley's as well. (They started buying shipments of this type of tree a few years ago, which I thought was weird since they are pre-cut trees and the farm GROWS its own trees. Whatever.) Motley's firs were priced TWICE (sometimes more) what Whole Foods was selling them for. So I made a couple of phone calls FROM Motley's and found out Whole Foods still had trees. So...........................

we LEFT the tree farm...................TREELESS.

We did. It was so weird.

We had driven all the way out there for some cocoa and a handful of peanuts, I guess. Back home we went. For naps. And then we picked up our grocery store tree that evening.

But y'all. It is absolutely stunning, this tree. It really is! I've never been a fan of the good ol' pine tree. We had a pine one year. And it was just alright to me. After that we were loyalists to the Leyland Cypress, which is truly a gorgeous tree. It is. I love its feathery branches. BUT this Fraser Fir is magnificent!! It sheds quite a bit more than a cypress will since the needles are so small, but the branches are perfect for ornament-hanging. I truly LOVE our tree this year. It could stand to be a bit taller ('cause I adore a stupid-tall tree), but other than that it is fabulous. Just fabulous.

So that's our tree story.

Then, of course, we decorated it.

Goodness! What's gotten into him today??

'Cause that's what you do with an already-stunning tree. Go here to see the finished product.

Now. About the ornaments.

I told you about my mom making Bucilla ornaments for me and then all her grand kids. But Paul and I also get an ornament for each child each year. They are not handmade or anything, but we try to choose something that signifies something about that child for that specific year.

Here's Noah's list of ornaments from his first CHRISTmas to this year:

1. ABC block

2. drum

3. wooden train

4. Thomas the Tank Engine

5. Lady & the Tramp from Disney World

6. wrapped candy (glass)

7. little boy reading a book

8. "Soccer is a Kick"

Saylor's:

1. Victorian baby carriage

2. Pat the Bunny book

3. Cinderella from Disney World

4. ice cream soda (glass)

5. Glass ballet slippers (pink, of course)

6. "Fashion Queen"

Gabriel's:

1. Blue baby shoe (glass)

2. Red toy car (ceramic)

3. "Mommy's Little Artist" (oh, if you only knew......)

Atticus's:

1. Little snow baby asleep with a "Silkie"

2. Fisher-Price stacking toy snowman

(Stock photos are due to the fact that I had to ORDER this year's ornaments and, though they just came in, I have not had time to photograph them yet. Nothing like last minute, right?)

In other CHRISTmas news, I have added wreaths above our French doors.

And some ribbon and gold balls to this garland.

I finished in the dining room, too.

And got out my Little Drummer Boy doll. He's drumming in the kids' hallway. (sorry, no pic)

But, friends, I've still yet to get some wreaths on the front door. I HAVE tried, but ...first I hadn't decided where to put the wreaths I had, then we couldn't find battery-operated lights for them (still haven't found any!), then I needed hooks, then I needed ribbon, then I bought the wrong kind of ribbon. Alas. What's a girl to do?? Maybe I'll have them done by the 26th. Maybe.

This has nothing to do with decorating, but if you didn't see Disney's Prep and Landing which aired on ABC, you seriously missed out. Because it was CUTE, CUTE!! (And we don't even DO Santa Claus.)

And then.................

This video makes me happy in so many ways.

I'm talking BIG GOOFY GRIN happy!! (Just wanted to share the happiness...) Merry CHRISTmas!!!