Deck the Halls

After trimming the tree (literally cutting off branches),
we used the remnants in the entry way.

Christmas has arrived at our house, at last. We finally put up our tree about a week ago. Sergio (formerly known as Scroogio) seemed to want to wait until December was in full swing, rather than deck the halls the day after Thanksgiving, which I would have been happy to do. It's just as well bceause we got a real tree and I don't want the thing dying on us before the real Christmas has come and gone. 

Vintage shop find No. 1 - wooden angel musicians 

Julia seemed to think that the real Christmas had already come and gone after we got the tree. We walked over to the church about 6 blocks from our house to buy a tree from their youth group. We picked one out and loaded it into our grocery cart and pushed it the 6+ blocks back to our house. It only tipped over once! We were a funny site, I'm sure. Julia walked because she refused to ride in her stroller on the return trip (typical) so I wore Clara and pushed an empty stroller and Sergio pushed the tree in the grocery cart and we both did our best to corral Julia on the way home. 

Vintage shop find No 2 - Santa plate
(desperately in need of some Christopher Elbow Peppermint Bark) 

Anyway, when we got home, she watched me put the lights on and I gave her some soft ornaments to arrange on lower branches. That was as far as we got before it was her bedtime. The next morning I couldn't wait to show her our completed, decorated tree. So I woke her up and said, "do you want to come downstairs and see our Christmas tree?" And she replied with something along the lines of "we did that yesterday," as in, "Christmas is over, Mommy. We already got our Christmas tree." Such a pure and simple understanding of Christmas. "Mitmas," she calls it. I am enjoying these years before the wanting begins. 

new home, new baby...
lots to commemorate this year with special Hallmark ornaments

I used to think that my Christmas tree ornaments could be grouped into two categories: 'ornaments from my childhood' or 'things most people would throw away' (examples: Chimay corks and even a Gatorade cap!) It was not until this year, while decorating with a toddler, that I realized that they also all fall into two other categories - either "looks like a toy" or "fragile and breakable" - or worse yet, the ones that fall into BOTH those categories. So I had to be judicious and hang the breakable ones up top and the softer ones down below. I broke the rule I learned long ago about hanging larger ornaments at the bottom and smaller ones up top, medium ones in the middle, etc. But I'm pretty sure we'll survive that broken rule. As will my ornaments.

Julia's shoe (it's mate was lost at the airport a long time ago)
I've been saving this for an ornament for a while. 

Julia is in deep conflict about Dear Old Santa. As she told me one morning before we went to meet him, she does "not yike Nanta." We met him at the neighborhood party and she wouldn't dare look upon him; we took her to the Santa at family night at Hallmark and she refused him in every way. Mind you, she doesn't cry and wail and fuss. She just averts her gaze and clings to my neck for dear life. I now have two great pictures of me, Santa, and the back of Julia's head.  I have heard her talking to the santas on the tree: "Oh, Nanta. I yon't yike you. I yike you. Sometimes I yon't yike you. Sometimes I do yike you." Apparently she's really torn up about this. I am actually relieved that my child doesn't willingly sit in the laps of strangers. Seems healthy to me. We'll see how her feelings change as the season progresses. She is at least having fun spotting Santa, Snowmen (plastic decorative ones since we haven't had any snow yet) all around town. So glad that "Mitmas" is here! 

Bought this whimsical Santa at the thrift store ($3!).
I realize now it reminds me of a pear.