BooMama's 2008 Christmas Tour of Homes

Welcome, BooMama Readers, to my home. I know I'm a day late, and I thank anyone who managed to navigate down to Linky #741 to join us on this tour. I didn't think I was going to get the chance to participate in the tour this year, but because school is closed due to ice on the roads, I have the morning free to get some pictures taken and posted on my blog.

For all my "regular readers" who just happen to be reading today - welcome as well. Enjoy the tour and jump on over to BooMama's Blog and check out some other beautiful homes this Christmas season.

Let's start with the tree. This year, I'm very sad to say I have only 5 ornaments on my tree. These are the 5 ornaments that I've received this year, as the "boxed-up" ones are still boxed up!! Thanks to the G's (that's the GaGa, G-Daddy, GiGi, and Grandaddy G for the visitors) we now have real presents under the tree; and I didn't wrap a single one!! There are a few Birthday presents for Little Man behind the chair for him to open for his birthday. Something we started last year was putting all our Christmas cards we receive on the tree as well. This helps with the "lack of decorating" that the tree received this year. Also, this is my first time to ever put ribbon the the tree. I think it really makes the piece work (even with only five decorations)!
And in that first picture you met Lucy the Shih Tzu (or princess) all decked out for Christmas as well. She's glad we are all home today as well!!
Another little Christmas corner is our Advent Calendar. This is a new tradition this year (as we received the calender last year for Christmas from GaGa). Each day Little Man opens the door for the day and the music box part at the top of the house goes off and plays music as the ice skaters and carolers move around. A small partridge in a pear tree pops out like a coo-coo!! And inside the door for the day is a small ornament. Little Man pulls out the ornament and puts it on HIS tree.
You can see that most (all but 2) of the ornaments are on the bottom branches. We are slowly moving up the tree.

The mantle is the next stop in our living room. I had every intention of getting our stockings monogrammed this year, but it still hasn't been done. The poinsettia is one of the 3 actual living plants I have at my home (2 inside and 1 outside). I'm no gardener, and I'm proud that the poinsettia has made it for almost three weeks now!

This little writing desk was my mothers, and has been in my home since before I was born. On the drawer pull hangs my stocking; the one I've had all my life. I was born and came home from the hospital a few days before Christmas, and when Christmas Eve came around my first year, my 20 year old brother realized that I didn't have a stocking to hang on the mantle. He went out late on Christmas Eve to Eckerd's drug store, the only thing open at the time, and found the pieces to create this stocking. He cut the ric-rac to spell my name down the front. I've had this stocking hanging every year since!
Also on this writing desk is one of my favorite Nativity sets. This one is made from Waterford Crystal, and I love the simplicity of it. It reminds me (as does my other set) that the only ones there the moment our Savior entered the world were Mary, Joseph, and Baby Jesus.
Here is my other simple Nativity set.
Most of my decorations for Christmas are just minor embellishments or touches of spirit around the home. I don't go "all out" with decorating (mainly because I don't want to have to clean all that up in a month).

The "table between the chairs" hosts a new reindeer that I received this year, as well as some favorite Christmas books we like to read.

And I love this new little "ornament" for the lamp shade. It uses magnets on the inside of the shade to hold tight. Although this was a birthday gift intended to be a Christmas decoration, I think this little gem will hang around all year. You can also put it on other items such as a vase or rose bowl full of flowers, a cover of a book laid out for decoration, the possibilities are endless.

Next we'll move into the dining room. All that I have in this room is the table center piece of fresh roses, hydrangea, and cranberries. The flower arrangement is on its last days, and then the trees and reindeer will stand alone on the table. The red walls in this room (and the playroom) help "decorate" for the Christmas season as well.

Speaking of the playroom, here is Little Man's tree for that room. And this year I also decorated the top of his new book shelves.

The glass tree-looking thing is made of baby food jars with lights poking through the lids. It lights up at night and looks quite interesting.

The kitchen is the next stop on the tour. Are you still with me?

There are only a few small touches in the kitchen. I'm quite sad that I have not made the time to get my mother's Dept. 56 Dickens's Village up yet this year. I'm really going to try and get it up before my Christmas Party on Thursday. We'll see.

So for now, this windowsill hosts the Santa tray and the Cookie Jar. I would love to say that the jar is filled with lots of Christmas treats, but anyone who reads this blog on a regular basis knows, I don't cook (well, not much). And when I do, it is such an event that I'll blog about it!! Also, take a moment to marvel at the only other indoor living plant in my home!! This one is about a year old - and I'm quite proud of it. Sometimes Daddy has to remind me to give it a drink, but so far so good!
There may not be any Chrsitams treats in the cookie jar but there are however a few cookies on the kitchen table. I mean BooMama asked us to serve treats. Right?

To make these cookies, find a local middle school student who plays in the band and purchase a bucket of pre-made cookie dough. Thaw the dough for a about an hour, and scoop it out into small balls. Place the balls on a cookie sheet (put parchment paper or foil down first, so that there isn't any mess to clean up later) and bake the cookies following the directions on the tub. See I cook - I mean I had to turn on the oven, and I even got my hands a little dirty!!

This chip and dip tray and snowman candle are on the kitchen island.

And if your tour takes you on an unplanned visit to the bathroom there are a few Christmas touches in there as well. I bring in a few spots of color into my white and sage green guest bathroom.

One last touch. A personalized painting of "The Night Before Christmas" just as Santa drops down the chimney. Little Man will be 3 years old this month and his name is still not painted onto one of the stockings in the painting. One day, one day...

And a quick shot of what kept us home from school today and the whole reason I had some time to take you on a tour of my home. A Texas winter storm!!!! Now, I know those of you above the Texas panhandle will be in awe of our winter weather, but contain yourselves, this is big for us around here. I mean this is enough to call off school for the day! The teacher in me is very excited!!

Thank you all for taking a tour of my some-what decorated home for Christmas. And may you and your family be blessed this Christmas season. And although all the presents, decorations and treats are great traditions and bring joy to many, the true JOY and the ONLY reason we celebrate Christmas is because God made himself man, came to Earth humbly as a small baby of a young virgin mother and became the atonement for our sins. Over 30 years later died, an innocent man, on a cross to pay the price we never could, and rose again in three days to wait in Heaven for us to join him. Never forget the Reason For The Season.

May GOD bless each and every one of you.