This weekend has been filled with lots of food, family, friends and the unpacking of LOTS of Christmas decorations. I always tell myself I am going to decorate the first weekend in November. It never actually happens though, because the hubby insists “no decorations” until after Thanksgiving. So….Thanksgiving weekend is traditionally when our decorations go up. This year I had ample time to get decorations up early…..and even though I had rearranged furniture and purchased some wreaths for my windows nothing really made it out of the attic.

I guess Big K was working his “delay the decorating” magic all the way from Afghan. This weekend like tradition would have it, we put up our tree and decorated our house. I had contemplated not decorating since we might not be home on “Christmas”, in the end I decided to pull every box down. LilK was a big help and the hot cocoa was flowing.

Here are my top 5 hightlights from the decorating extravaganza.

1. We have more Santa’s than any family should have. (Somehow Big K received a Santa one year and family always makes sure we get a new one each year.)

2. Hanging Big K’s stocking was very sad, made me miss him even more. I almost didn’t put it up…..but then decided against it. It is right next to Med K’s who’ll be in FL for Christmas this year.

3. The living room has the perfect window for the tree. Last year I put it up in the corner of the living room….it looks much better in front of the window even though it takes up more space.

4. The fun of decorating two trees. Our family tree is in the living room and I have one skinny tree in the dining room. I hang all white and silver ornaments on that tree….it is very simple and does not have that many ornaments.

5. Finding and remembering the story behind special ornaments. We get one special ornament every year. They usually come from some place we have traveled. They don’t have to be expensive, just unique. Sometimes they are dated, but not always. It’s a great tradition and I especially love all the hand made “school” ornaments.

Now if I can just locate my camera to take some photos…..