Around the House

Last week, before Jackson's birthday party, I started decorating a bit. I put up two of the three Christmas trees and fought with Christmas lights the entire time. Then I hung lighted garland around my front door. And fought with Christmas lights the entire time. I had exhausted myself with Christmas lights. Those darn buggers.*

I always save the "big" children's tree in our family room for last. Mostly because of Jackson's birthday party. I can just imagine the tree falling over with that rambunctious group of boys.

So, like I said, I started decorating last week. The above picture is in our newly-painted kitchen. (We hung up bead board and painted the walls. More on that later. Maybe.) I had some of my vintage aprons hanging on the above shelf. Last week I decided they needed some seasonal sprucing up, so it got a makeover.

The Advent Christmas Stocking Garland has been hanging since Advent-Eve night, after the kids were in bed. The children look forward to its arrival every year. And they look forward to a nightly "treat," too. (The above mantel has been rearranged since this photo was taken last week.) The above print was printed at Office Depot on poster paper for around $10. LOVE it.

A little snowman print in the dining room above my sewing table adds just the right touch. (I found the print online for free and shrunk it to fit a thrifted frame, which I spray painted black two weeks ago.)

And a little forest on a different dining room window. (These are the super-cute trees that were bleached Sarah-style a few years back. I had forgotten about them and now wonder where the rest of them are ...)

*On Monday I decided to put up the third and final Christmas tree. We had bought a pre-lit tree years ago and some of the lights stopped working. When I pulled it out on Monday, I noticed most of the lights were not working. I spent two hours on my knees cutting the lights off (the bottom section only) with wire cutters. My poor delicate knees cannot handle such torture. In fact, I can barely kneel at all since I fell, over a year ago. My poor knees are literally bruised from Monday. I usually kneel on pillows, but forgot on Monday. Anyway, when Joe came home he told me that he thought the lights I had cut off may have been good and only needed a new fuse. The children decorated the tree after school yesterday. We are inching closer to Christmas ...