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!!!

Snips, Snails, & Pretty Pigtails: Atticus

My baby.......

is FOURTEEN (and a half) MONTHS OLD!!!! What???!! Where has the TIME gone??! He has been SO busy lately--just coming into himself and all--that I HAD to get some of these things written down.

Four to five weeks ago Atticus enjoyed being stood up to walk from one person to another, but now he CHOOSES to walk on his very own! He'll just be playing in his room alone and decide to walk from one part of the room to another. And we used to have to steady him a bit before we let go of him, but now he just HAS stability and often TAKES OFF immediately upon being set down! He's a go-getter, that boy!! He also figured out how to stand up from a seated position, which means even if he topples over, he's getting back up almost every time! Last week, Paul gave him a diaper to go put in the trash. He walked all the way from his bedroom to the kitchen holding that diaper, and then he pulled open the trash can cabinet and disposed of that diaper properly! Ha ha!!

Here he is having his first taste of peanut butter (spread on toast). Yummy in your tummy!

What else? Hmm...

Well, he's a little mockin' bird if there ever was one! I tell ya! He repeats CONSTANTLY!! Because of it, he already says "Noah" all the time...and knows exactly what he's talking about, too. Like Noah walks in, Atticus points at him, and then says "Noah!" (only it's more like "Whoa-uh!" but hey...) There's no denying he's got that one down.

Other things he readily SAYS: "Ah-lah" when pretending to talk on the phone, "ball," "nye nye" at bedtime, "mama," "dada," "bye bye," "muh" when also doing the sign for "more," "sssssss" for socks and snakes, "hah" (very breath-y) when he wants to say "hot" (like when I've just put something in the oven or when I'm cooking on the stove top), "no no," "oh, no," "whoa," "oh, boy," "no," "done," "now," and "hi." (I'm almost positive there's more, but that's all I can think of right now.)

And then there are the signs he uses. He gets such a kick out of communicating with us. He's really easy to teach because he's such a little eager beaver. Anyway, he consistently uses sign language for "nursing," "hat," "more," "cow," "eat," "hurt," "fan," "kangaroo," "gorilla," (those last two look exactly the same right now...my bad) "dog," "cat," and...again...that's all I can think of.

And then he can put his arms up when I tell him to and touch his nose and open his mouth wide and dance and pray and his newest thing? He "smiles" on command. Ha ha ha!!

You should see it in person. All scrunchy and cute. It's hilarious, frankly.

Another thing that gives me SUCH pleasure to just sit and watch is when he's just playing. I love seeing the activity choices he makes. Besides the age-typical "putting in and taking out" games he loves, he also really likes stacking toys--like the "rings on the post" type doomawhoppers you can get. You know the ones. Like this.

He'll sit for the LONGEST with something like that and just keep stacking and unstacking them. He's really good at it, too! Very diligent. Sticks with it until it gets done. See what I mean about determination?

He'll also sit and play on the couch for upwards of 30 minutes! Perfectly happily. He just goes back and forth from one end to the other. Looks behind the couch. Sits down. Stands up and holds the back cushions. Give him a toy and a book, and he's good to go for AT LEAST as long as it takes to throw a load of laundry in the dryer or get lunch made or hunt down the older toddler to see what awful trouble he's gotten himself into with a marker and a wall...that sort of thing. Only once or twice have I walked in to see him sitting with his back to the edge, teetering a bit too much for my peace of mind. (He didn't even KNOW he was in any danger!) Ha! Before you think I'm neglectful of my wee ones, let me explain that usually there are three other irresponsible crazies running around in the same room, so...you know...surely SOMEone would catch him if necessary, right?

I tried to post this video on the last "Snips" post, but I must have exceeded my memory limit (since there was another video on it) because it wouldn't upload. I definitely wanted to get it on here, though it was actually filmed in October, because it shows him playing on the couch like I was saying. AND it's him doing his very favorite thing right now: reading. Seriously! Give him a stack of books in his crib (or on the couch), and he will be engrossed for a wonderfully long time! That's our little professor.

If Santa Existed...

...I'd ask him for this.

I Am OBVIOUSLY Unbelievably TIRED

Remember when I told you about my middle name?

Ummmm....yeah....I might have forgotten one other person named that.

You know, besides all those people REALLY close to me...like my uncle's wife's second-cousin- once-removed's sister's dog.

Ummmm....

like.

my.

daughter.

(Saylor Kathryn Davidson)

like her.

Thanks, Jenny. What would I do without you? (Besides forget my own daughter's name?!)

CHRISTmas Tour

Let's have a tour! Sure, why not? After all, I never did finish my Where I Live posts from way back when. Not that there's anything really DIFFERENT about this tour seeing as how you've already SEEN this room...a couple of times.

I did, at least, throw a few CHRISTmas-y things in here, so it qualifies for...

Like...we have some lights.

WHITE lights. That's what we do. We are not fans of the colors. (Except on Nana's pergola over the back porch.) Nah, it's not THAT big of a deal. We like colors alright, but we went with a golden/burgundy/cream color theme when we first got married, and you've pretty much gotta go with white lights. (Besides, they're just better. Ha!)

And don't forget the twinkly......Twinkly is a requirement.

We hung our stockings.

This is my stocking made by my Mamaw Corene upon my birth. (So, it's old.)

My mom made Paul one when we got married and then each of the kids got one for their first CHRISTmas. They are velvet with satin lining and lots upon lots of beads and sequins. Right, Mom?? Granddaughters get red stockings, grandsons get dark green. (I think Saylor would actually like to steal mine.)

My angel stocking holders were purchased at Hobby Lobby last year when they were running a 50% off sale on all CHRISTmas stuff. Thank goodness. 'Cause while ONE stocking holder at $10 ain't bad, I sure didn't want to buy SIX of them at that price!! $30 for all six was truly a good deal. They are rustic (which I like) and very, very heavy (which means they won't topple when the stockings get filled) and they have a nice long hook so that they sit farther back on the mantle (giving them even more stability). So...yeah. I pretty much love these things!!

I've got my snowmen out. They were made by a lady I used to teach with. She makes them out of white chenille (all patterns) and bits of fabric. Each one is unique. My favorite is the little angel with the golden "hair" under her halo. Awwww....

It's funny. The first ones I ever bought were for my mom. I gave her an angel boy and girl. Deep down I was pining away for that girl!! I ended up going back to get an angel for myself and over the course of two years ended up with all of these!! (Sherry Stanton, you are so awesome!) But see the tall one? My dog (Before Children) ate his nose off. Nice, huh? Oh! I should point out that the snowmen on the sled were not Sherry's creations. My Aunt Lisa gave that to me on our first CHRISTmas with Noah. It's a snowmommy, daddy, and baby (with bottle).

And LOOK!! I managed to frame (years ago) two favorite CHRISTmas photos in nice gold frames to match all my CHRISTmas decor, but I've fallen a bit behind, wouldn't you say??

We have our FamilyLife nativity out, but we haven't started reading through the book just yet, so the figures are still packed away. We'll probably start it soon enough. There's always so much to cram in over these last several days before the BIG DAY!

We always set out our family's favorite CHRISTmas stories as well. In fact, I pack them with the ornaments and stuff so we only see them at CHRISTmas time. Saylor was asking about them even before I had dragged the red boxes down from the attic! (She's a book-lover like her momma. In fact, I think there are a couple books missing from the pile. Hmm...better check her room.)

And we've got a tree.

Just kidding. This is just a mini-tree I've had for years. I bought those tEE-NINE-see (spelling?) ornaments and garlands they have at Wal-Mart every year for this tree. (You KNOW how I love wittle bitty things.) It has been Noah's job EVERY year to decorate it. Saylor helped him this year. It looks quite nice, doesn't it?

But don't worry....

We do have a real tree. A nice, big 7.5 foot one. (A shrimp compared to the 10-foot trees we USED to buy!!) I've SO got to blog about our experience getting this year's tree. Yeah. It was ...... interesting.

Growing up, my mom made Bucilla ornaments for each of us kids every year. Now she's making them for her grandchildren.

Here are some of my favorites (from my own collection):

Always liked his little broom.

My very first ornament! Raggedy Ann, 1974

Geppetto from Pinocchio. GOT to love those cool tools!

And this year's.........drum roll, please....................

Gabriel's Dorothy from The Wizard of Oz

Noah's Train Car

Atticus's Nemo

Saylor's Prince Charming from Cinderella

I've still got to work on my wreaths. I have four new wreaths to hang on our two sets of French double doors, but I've yet to purchase my hooks to actually...you know...hang them. And the dining area is definitely not ready for viewing either, considering it's serving as a staging area for all the junk we're ridding ourselves of (see future posts for explanation...and ignore the fact that I just ended that sentence with a preposition).

Okay. That's that! Glad you could stop by.