Sunday, December 14, 2008

On the 11th day of Christmas, my favorite thing would be...



I personally enjoy a Christmas tree stuffed chalk full of as many ornaments as its branches can hold. I always say: the more, the better. (I'm sure you're all really, really shocked by that!) Our tree consists of white lights, gold poinsettias, cinnamon scented pine cones (I have an unhealthy, year-round love affair with cinnamon EVERYTHING that reaches critical mass around the holidays.) gold, silver, and white ornaments, white porcelain ornaments, and several keep sake and hand-me-down ornaments from years past. I love to receive ornaments as gifts from special friends and family members. I never forget who gave them to me (I think I get that from my Grammy. I swear, she could tell you who was and was not present at our Christmas dinner in 1985 if you asked her! - I'm not that good per se, but I try...) and they make me smile every time I see them hanging on our tree.


We started a fun tradition about 2 years ago when I bought a metal scroll case (above) that says "Santa's Letter" at Roberts (on clearance - .80 cents baby!). Kortland writes a letter to Santa and puts it in the scroll case about a week before Christmas, and when we get up in the morning, Santa has taken the letter and knows what Kort wants for Christmas! (Even though he already knows anyway...of course!)


I also love handmade ornaments. Heaven bless preschool and elementary school teachers for helping my little angel makes these darling (though often hideous) little treasures. I'm totally Kortland's biggest fan. I keep every paper he so much as scribbles on, so these yearly gifts are absolutely priceless to me. You can't see this ornament all that well, but it's just a store bought glass ball ornament that Kort dipped in a bunch of different colors of paint. Very lovely.


I was obsessed with fake birds when I was little. (I was weird... I know.. got it.) Due to the fact that real feathers were used to create them, they always seemed really really life like, and I just loved them. So I really love this bird; It brings back all sorts of great memories from living in the Monroe house (ages: 6-12) It's the only bird I put on my tree so as to not make myself look like a crazy cat lady before my time... but drop by my house, oh I don't know, 40 years down the road, and you're likely going to find about 20 cats, way too many baskets of yarn, and a very bird-y tree! (Which leads me to: Kyle, please live forever... or at least long enough to keep me from having, well, ANY of those things... ladies first okay?)

A busy boy!

Man, Kort loved putting up the decorations! He was thrilled.








Adding the finishing touch!




A story, if you will..
Kort's little neighbor friends (2 brothers, ages 4 and 6) came by to play "Super Smash Brothers" the other day, and stopped for a moment to gaze at the gloriousness of our newly decorated tree. And this is the conversation Kyle overheard:
Neighbor kid: "Hey Kortland, which ornaments are yours?"
Kortland: (laughs...a little confused.) "None of them, they belong to the tree."
Neighbor kid: "I know, but which ones are yours?"
Kortland: (another nervous "he he he" as if he's being asked a trick question) "They're all the tree's ornaments. They belong to the tree."
Ha ha ha ha ha!
My kid is so Gandhi...
or Leo DiCaprio...
or...Al Gore!

6 comments:

Kristina P. said...

Your tree looks so fancy! I think the only thing it's missing is a picture of me. J/K! ;)

Ashley Koz said...

WOW! your tree is crazy gorgeous, love all the ornaments

Nisha said...

Absolutely beautiful! Prize winning tree :) I already took mine down. I know, bah humbug. After picking it back up off the ground three times in one day, I packed it back up. Sophie just doesn't get the look and don't touch thing and I'd rather not torture her, (okay, me) everyday. I'll put it back up Christmas Eve so we can wake up Christmas morning with presents under the tree.

Unknown said...

lol! Kort's going to fit into the modern world just fine! Kids say the cutest things!

What a fun tree! Our tree looks hilarious as the bottom three boughs of branches have absolutely nothing on them. Ethan has a bit of an obsessive curiosity for anything shiny. We're trying to curb that by dangling the shinies just out of reach? Think it will work? Yeah, me neither.

Josh and Emily said...

I love your tree-I also love how you write everything. I don't think I ever read your blog without laughing so hard my stomach hurts. Can I be your crazy cat lady roommate? I swear that will be me too. Josh won't let me have a cat right now, but I am going to wear him down :)

Heather said...

Your tree looks beautiful, Laura!!