Christmas Home Tour and an Apology

Merry Christmas everyone! I'm kind of excited to share my Christmas home with you, and kind of embarrassed too. Each year some of my favorite blogging ladies host Christmas link up parties so all us crazy for decorating bloggers can share what we've done this year and get inspired by and encourage each other. In the past I've spent lots of time looking (and pinning) but this is my first year posting and linking.

So let's pretend you just came to my front door this morning and I'll show you around.

"Nice door," you'd say. "Thanks," I'd say back. And then I would launch into an apology about the wet doggy nose prints all over the windows that I forgot to clean. But you wouldn't really care, right? Because we're friends.

Open the door and you'd see my entryway.

And to the left my little silver desk table Christmas tree still life thingie. 

You know how the camera adds ten pounds? I think it adds a bunch of dust and fingerprints too because every time I took a picture I'd see something that I should have cleaned. My first impulse was to get all annoyed and stomp around huffing and dusting but then I decided nuts to that. Doing this is supposed to be fun...dusting is not fun...ergo, I didn't dust. 

Let's focus instead on the wonderful things, like this paper star wreath that Ellie made for me last year. I love it.

Now let's head up the stairs. 

Here's how I did the wallpapered stair risers

Ribbon and greenery are an easy, and super cheap way to Christmas up a gallery wall. I just used the extra branches they cut off my tree when we bought it, and I save the bows every year. 

I spent the most decorating time this year on the top of my stairs. Like most Christian moms I spend a fair amount of time trying to help my family remember, and remember myself (REMEMBER!) to let our hearts feel the joy of Jesus' birth. All this decorating and partying and gift giving is wonderful and I really love it, but even more and everyday I am grateful to know my Savior, and I was hoping to do something to help us keep that focus.

 

 My tips on making your own chalkboard art are here. But if you want to buy one, I pretty much copied the lettering from this one. I want to be sure and put a link because I really don't want to be stealing for Christmas :-) That would be bad.

And with that, we are into the rest of the house.

Other people have the Elf on a Shelf; for the last 15 years we've had this little fellow my kids call "Creepy Santa." But I know they secretly love him.

Now a picture of the living room with a heaping side serving of the mantel. 

This is the first year that neither of the Christmas police (Maddie and Katie) are home, so I was able to do the mantel a bit different than the usual six huge red velvet stockings that they always insist go up. This is a very tiny bright spot in the misery of not having all my kids home for the holidays.

This is a TON of photos, eh? Less talking, we just need to get through this so we can get a snack.

Tree. I believe you know what this is without my labeling it but apparently I can't stop myself.

My Grammy made all these white crocheted snowflakes and angels for me. I can't even tell you how much I love them.

Also, we are so classy that we have a fish ornament. 

My snow globe village. Because everything can't be perfectly fancy.

Let's finish up with my last nativity. It's on top of the white painted piano.

Thanks for stopping by friend. I really do hope your holiday is wonderful and full of joy and peace. Merry Christmas!

Linking Up!

The Shabby Nest

I'm Not a Trophy Wife

Get Your DIY on December- Confessions of a Serial DIY-er

The Nesting Place