Deck the Halls!

So, BooMama is having a Christmas Tour of homes, and I think Gee, what a great idea! Yes, the tour was last Friday, December 15, but hey- I was busy. So go take the tour at BooMama's. Look through all the beautifully decorated homes, and if your home looks anything like those, go take some pictures! But if your home is anything like mine, which is occupied by 5 very messy children and would make the decorators on HGTV cry, come back here, and I'll show you around. You'll feel right at home.

My modest home is not fancy enough to have a foyer, but it does have a short hallway as you come through the front door, which I love. I've always wanted a front entrance area to greet guests. I love my tree, on which I splurged $20 at Old Time Pottery. See the little village in the middle? It has fiber-optic lights that change from pink to blue to green to white... my 10-year-old son thought it was the most beautiful thing he had ever seen and he spent every bit of his money to buy it for me a few years ago. It receives a place of honor every year.

On the right, my skates hang from the wooden coat peg shelf. I bought these at a yard sale for $1 and painted them (they won Champion at the fair last year!) But I never know where to put them, so they just hang on a coat peg. Maybe one day.

This crocheted Santa wall-hanging was my grandmother's. When I was a teenager, I thought the stuff in her house was so old-fashioned. Now I love it.

Taking a quick peek into the kitchen, we find the ginger bread houses. Yes, there are supposed to be 5 houses, but my perfectionist 13-year-old could not get his house "right", so he ate it instead. I was proud of myself for finding such a great place for them, well out of the reach of nibblers. You can also see out the window that there is no white Christmas in sight. Sigh.

On to the living room... on Boo Mama's tour, you'll see many gorgeous nativity scenes. Here's ours, which would be better described as "The Looting of Bethlehem".

Here we have the loveseat, above which is the mirror, which all the decorating books say "adds space" to your room. Don't I wish. And draped across the top of the mirror is the garland which is routinely "adjusted" by the kitty cat. I made these stockings for me and John the first year we were married. (Lest you mistakenly think I am some super-crafter, rest assured that you have now seen all of the Christmas decorations which I have personally created.)

On the table next to the loveseat is Rudolph. I bought him the second year John and I were married. He cost $5, which was quite a splurge for us at that time.

These are some of my favorite things. The cabinet belonged to my grandmother and is filled with quilts from both of my grandmothers, books, and normally, pictures. But this month, it has Santas instead of pictures. My mom made the ceramic Christmas tree and the carolers when I was a toddler and my dad was in Vietnam. For years, the carolers were the centerpeice on the coffee table in my Gran's living room.

Here's the obligatory Christmas tree picture. The tree looked a lot better when it first went up, but it's been "rearranged" several times by the children and the kitty cat.

So there you are... the down-home tour of my house. You're welcome to visit any time!