Around the house

With Will working his late, late nights (or rather his early, early mornings) the house feels incredibly quiet at night after the kids are in bed.  Normally I dread that emptiness, but with the Christmas tree fully decorated and white lights illuminating nearly every room, the evenings feel a little less empty and a little more peaceful.  I snapped a couple of living room pictures the other night when I came downstairs and audibly sighed at how beautiful the tree looks this year.

I am in love with it—small-ish, but incredibly fragrant.  You can’t go wrong with a Frazier fir.

The tree is inundated with meaningful ornaments, my favorite of which include the children’s names:

We have a dozen or so of these gold cut-out ornaments that Will and I have collected in our eight years of marriage.  We try to get one from every special place we've traveled.

The Biltmore

Glacier National Park

Frances ensured our twin lions were appropriately dressed for the season.

We bought this Christmas card holder ages ago (probably the first year we were married) and it’s perfect.

I love, love, love this musical-themed wreath that (where else) sits on the piano.

My girl “Martha” came back and installed her signature boxwood wreaths in the sunroom.

This Santa sits center stage in our kitchen.  I like to pretend he’s an old family relic and display him as homage to both sides’ German roots (he looks Old World, no?).

My first Christmas display on our newly-painted white fireplace.

So, here’s my quandary—I love the idea of a sleek, modern Christmas look (think Crate & Barrel or Nate Berkus), but when it comes to following through with my own decorating I tend to gravitate towards tradition.  This mantle is my first dip in the minimalist pool and I know I hardly skimmed the surface.  I’m still questioning the stockings (don’t tell Will because he likes them a lot), so this look may evolve as the season progresses (and Home Goods has its first holiday sale).

The Twelve Days of Christmas plates and wine glasses, inherited from my sister and mother respectively.

The kids’ favorite, Will’s childhood advent calendar handmade by his mother.  I am still in awe of how genuinely excited Frances and George are to open the next days’ surprise felt tree ornament.

And my favorite, a plate full of holiday pretzel hugs.

Please note the prominent blue M&M hug specially made by Will.  I can’t bring myself to eat it.  After all, if Will can’t be home for 98% of the day at least the Christmas cookie he made can keep us company.

We miss our blue M&M.

Happy Tuesday, everyone!