Christmas Decorations

I thought I would add some pictures in honor of the coming holiday season. I am in the holiday preparation mode and am loving the lights and songs and preparations that remind us that Christmas is on its way. Maybe it's because this is the first time in 4 years I have been in the states while the holidays are building up, but I think every once in awhile we need reminding why the holidays used to feel so special to us when we were kids.

It could be the lights that people shamelessly decorate their houses and yards with, or it could be the trees. For some of us this includes memories of trudging through the mud with your dad and brother, axe in hand looking for that perfect tree, for others it's getting the tree out of the box and trying to remember which color order those branches are supposed to go in... The special feeling could be the hope we are reminded of with the birth of Christ, the substitutionary death He died on the cross in our place and the hope of eternal life that this leaves us with. Maybe it's getting the box of ornaments out of it's yearly resting place, dusting off the ornaments and remembering the stories behind which each one represents... It could be that Christmas song you love so much you can't help but sing to when it comes onto the radio yet AGAIN for the 1,oooth time... Who knows why we all used to get excited just for the word Christmas and the memories it instilled, but being out of the country for it years in a row, makes the month leading up to it seem that much more special.

In honor of this strange nostalgia that I am feeling, I thought it appropriate to include pictures of the first snow we had and decorating the tree. Enjoy.

Our first snow. East coasters will call this "flurries" but I say if it sticks to anything, it is officially a snow. So, there you go. The first snow of the season. Hopefully the next one to come will include an actual inch on the ground.

My Christmas tree in my house. I went out to Walmart and bought a fake one on sale. This way I don't have to worry about watering it or the fact that I have to keep it up at least 12 days after Christmas.

The artfull masterpiece of my boyfriend's Christmas tree. Complete with colored lights, glass ball ornaments and tinsel. I love the star.