Christmas Traditions

It's the most wonderful time, OF THE YEAR! We love Christmas. The hustle. The bustle. Everything about it. We're just over two weeks away, and I feel pretty prepared this year! Shopping is 95% complete. I have an upcoming Saturday afternoon dedicated to wrapping, wine, and "Love Actually." It's an annual tradition where I lock myself away, and TCB. I have a couple days off work before Christmas when I can shop for food, prep meals, and bake. The stars are aligning quite nicely.

Jason and I both have lots of time off work later in the month, and can't wait for it! There are a few house projects we'll be tackling (Get excited, Jason!), but I also plan for plenty of down time, slow mornings with coffee and cinnamon rolls, and loads of Christmas music belting through the house.

Below are a few snapshots of some of our other traditions we love...

Scarlet "oohs" and "aahs" every time we plug in the tree. This is the artificial tree that went up the day after Thanksgiving.

Here's my sweet boy, during our outing for our real tree. The smell. The nostalgia. There are so many reasons to love the real thing.

Scarlet...running away. Not the first time, and surely not the last.

She's a beaut, Clark.

We also celebrate the feast of St. Nicholas every December 6. We leave our shoes by the fireplace, and in the morning, St. Nick has filled them with sweets, treats, and the like. "It is in giving, that we receive."

Scarlet, decorating one of our two Advent calendars with each day that goes by.

Every year since Emerson was tiny, we've decorated gingerbread men, houses, and trains. Scarlet seems pleased with her work.

A masterpiece.

Poor, Gingy.

Emerson's house. He's since eaten about half of it.

Another annual tradition, is creating homemade Christmas ornaments for our loved ones. Emerson loves this, and I'm sure Scarlet will. If she ever stops eating the beads.

My little sweatshop, cranking them out. And possibly throwing a few gang signs?