I can officially say that the halls have been decked at this house! This will be our second Christmas in our home and already I’m getting a sense of the traditions that will be a part of A&Z’s childhood memories. Last weekend we put up the outdoor lights and this weekend we decorated indoors and put up our tree.
It’s funny how the holidays puts life into perspective. As we were getting our Christmas tree, it suddenly hit me that I have my own family with one girl and one boy and I drive a freaking minivan and today there was a Christmas tree strapped to the top of it. Surreal. These are the types of things you see in the happy family Christmas movies.
We don’t actually don’t have that many decorations just yet, so we concentrated on the living room. It looks like the Christmas spirit threw up on just that one part of the house. Here’s how it turned out:
I went with traditional green, red, and gold to decorate the tree. Oh, and sparkles. Lots of pretty sparkles! It was looking kind of bare with just the ornaments, so I added huge bows throughout the tree to give it some umph:
We rearranged the furniture so that we could display the Christmas tree from our living room window. Last year it was tucked in the corner next to the piano. I’m still trying to get used to it since our couch now blocks the opening that leads to the dining room. I think it makes the living room feel a bit cozier. I plan on hanging ornaments behind the couch to further separate the living room from the dining room and make a statement instead of an awkward hole behind the couch.
We don’t have a fireplace in our home so we hung our stockings above the piano. I’ll just have to teach Arielle to sing “hang the stockings above the piano” instead of “fireplace” in all the Christmas songs. Jeff said I couldn’t hang the stockings directly on the mirror, so I improvised by hanging them on the pre-lit garland that I bought last year on clearance. I still have to sew on ornaments with our initials on them so that Santa knows which stockings belongs to whom:
I just love how everything sparkles and glimmers from the Christmas lights and decor. But at the end of the day, we light ’em up to see our kids’ faces light up. We make memories. We create joy and excitement. We bring the magic of Christmas to life. Because nothing fills my heart more than seeing this look on their face:
Have you started decorating your home yet? What are some ways you make the holidays special for your kids?
Thanks for stopping by. I hope this post gave you the warm and fuzzies like it did for me. 🙂
xoxo // gracielle.
It looks awesome – very festive and sparkly and fun! And your kids look so cute and happy 🙂 We have a tree full of tons of ornaments because one of our traditions is to give each family member a new ornament that kind of represents them for that year. That means we have a ton of ornaments on the tree!
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That’s a great tradition! Oh, our tree FELL OVER yesterday and we had to do some serious damage control and put all the ornaments back up. I’m hoping the tree crashing does NOT become one of our traditions. LOL
Gracielle recently posted…Light ’em up
The Christmas spirit “threw-up” in your living room. Hahaha! Too funny!! Well, it looks beautiful! And your children are absolutely adorable! My stuff is going up today:) No minivans will be harmed in the making of my holiday decor, however. My tree is plastic:/ Merry Christmas!
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My tree FELL OVER yesterday and we had to do the whole thing over again. All my husband kept saying was “we’re going to get an artificial tree next year!” I think you’re on to something with that plastic tree!
Gracielle recently posted…Light ’em up
I do have warm fuzzies. And I’m often shocked to find myself with a son and a daughter and a minivan! When did that all happen?
Well, I think you saw my post about the Christmas spirit and about my tree. We decorated like crazy. I’m still waiting to feel the full spirit of the holiday. I haven’t quite gotten there yet, although it’s getting close.
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You’ll have to tweet me when that holiday spirit hits you! The day after we put up all our decorations, it snowed a lot so the holiday spirit was in full effect!
Gracielle recently posted…Light ’em up
Your home looks so festive and warm, gorgeous!
Alison recently posted…Love Language
Thanks, Allison! The holiday spirit is in full-effect over here!
Gracielle recently posted…Light ’em up
These pictures are STUNNINGLY GORGEOUS! Your home is beautiful and your children are ADORABLE! 🙂 I love this post!-Ashley
Thanks so much, Ashley! I mentioned to you earlier that the tree FELL OVER yesterday. Today, we are 1 day topple-free! Just need to be topple-free for 14 more days!
Gracielle recently posted…Light ’em up
Your decorations look great! I love the bows on the tree. You’ve got everything all coordinated; I wish I could do that.
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Thanks, Rabia! The only reason why it is coordinated is because I’m a cheapskate. I got the bows last year on clearance and I bought a TON. When I pulled them out this year, I just hung them on the tree, on the garland, and on the banisters and it turned out to looking not so bad!
Yes I have all kinds of warm fuzzies after reading this post. I love it so much! I have my tree up and my decorations, but I have to say, I am drooling over yours. It all coordinates so well, so festive but it all blends in with the vibe of your home. I loved when we were little pulling out the Christmas decorations. I hope when I have kids, they get that same feeling of glee.
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It’s funny because my husband never had these traditions so he doesn’t get why we go through all the trouble. I loved it when we were little and my parents would bring in a fresh Christmas tree – the house smelled amazing. Now that my daughter is old enough – I can see that she understands that it is special and she will probably remember it, too. It’s the best feeling!
{Melinda} The tree and mantel are GORGEOUS … but the photos of your kiddos just melt my heart. TOO adorable!!
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The trees and decorations are beautiful Gracielle! The kids look so excited.
The tree is gorgeous. Our Christmas tree always looks like little kids decorated it (well, that’s fitting I guess.) Our tradition is getting the tree as a family, even if my husband doesn’t get home until Christmas Eve, and then putting as many different colored balls, multi-colored lights, and silver tinsel as it can hold.
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Your halls are DECKED OUT AMAZINGLY!!! It looks like a Home Decor spread in a magazine, while the kiddos look like they can be in a Holiday Macy’s ad! This makes me crave some hot chocolate and warm fuzzies! =) Well done, Grace!!!
Aww thank you Joan! It’s just that one room of the house and the decorations pretty much stop there. But the kids love it and know that it’s something special. 🙂
The tree looks gorgeous, the decorating looks beautiful and you got great pictures of your children! What more could you ask for?! 🙂
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Thank you, Michelle! The only thing I could ask for is for the presents to wrap themselves and then I’ll finally be ready for Christmas!!
The x-mas tree looks awsome a&z are cuties
Thanks, Stephanie!