Christmas Decor

Here is a tour of my Christmas home decor.  I'm linking up with Kelly's Korner.  

Snowmen are one of my favorite's for winter decor.  This is my Scentsy Bluster warmer.  It has sold out two winters in a row.  I'm glad I got mine before it was gone.  

 I had a June wedding in 2004.  One of the most unexpected gifts was from my neighbor, and it was Christmas decorations.  It was definitely one of my favorite wedding gifts.  I loved pulling it out on our first Christmas together and every one since.  Almost all the Christmas decorations I have come from that wedding gift.  This snowman bowl was one of the wedding gifts and probably one of my favorite holiday pieces.

This fiber optic train was among those wedding gifts too.  Now that we have kids, they love watching it light up.

These snowmen were also wedding gifts.  As I said, I love snowmen, so these are special parts of my decorations.  

Santa Ice Skating is a whimsical statue.  It makes me smile whenever I look at it, and I love all the detail to it.  Are you surprised when I say it was another part of the wedding gift?  

Since our family is complete now, I wanted to buy new, matching stockings.  When looking online I saw these at Lands' End.  They were perfect because there was one that matched up perfectly for each of our kids.  We got a great deal, and I'm excited to use these for many years to come.  

Ryan has always been fond of penguins.  Sean LOVES choo-choo trains.  And I was happy that they had one that was slightly girly for my little girl.  

When we first got married, I had these visions of the perfectly decorated Christmas tree.  I had toyed with the idea of a beach themed tree in perfect blue, silver, and gold decorations strung with beautiful shells.  But then I realized how each Christmas ornament we got was so special to us.  They don't necessarily fit together or make the most beautifully decorated tree, but all the ornaments we place on the tree are meaningful to us and hold our memories.  The kids placed most of the ornaments this year, which is why so many of them are on the lower half of the tree.  It may not be the tree I had once envisioned, but it is perfect for our family.  

Happy Holidays everyone!

Half a Year

Today Leah is 6 months old.  How did half a year go by already?  I know every parent says time flies by, and that is because it REALLY does.  Sure, we were pretty busy during these 6 months--selling our house, moving to New England, living with my parents for 7 weeks, buying and moving into our new home, and now finally living together as a family, but it still seemed to go by too fast.  Leah amazes me every day.  While I want to slow time down and keep her as my little baby, I also look forward to all the new milestones and sweet moments yet to come.
 

A little bit about Leah at 6 months:
Leah cut her first two teeth this week.  These teeth disrupted her sleep a little bit, but since she is co-sleeping with me, it was more disruptive to my sleep.  She is still nursing like a champion.  We'll start some solid foods soon, maybe after the holidays.  She loves watching her brothers; Ryan can ALWAYS make her laugh.  She is still a Momma's girl.  She is starting to talk/squeal more.  She seems a bit shy.  Whenever we visit with friends/family she is a bit quiet and reserved, so often times people don't get to see her bright and happy disposition.  But we see the happy side all the time at home.  She's starting to enjoy spending some time on the floor.  She enjoys rolling around in just her diaper and beating her belly with her arms.  She loves jumping in her jumperoo.  She loves to take cat naps on her mommy or beside her in the bed.  I'm probably completely screwing up her sleep patterns and habits, but I'll deal with that another day ;)  I just love her smile so much.  It can completely change my day when she smiles at me.  I feel so lucky to have this little girl as part of our family and cannot wait to watch as she continues to grow.

Dear Santa,

Yesterday I posted a few things I'm loving.  Today I'm going to post a few things that I'm lusting after that are on my Christmas list.  I'm pretty sure I know a few of them will be under my tree this Christmas, you could say I have a direct connection with Santa.  (And maybe he sometimes uses my debit card ;)

1.  Urban Decay Naked 2 Palette 

Urban Decay makes the best eye shadows in my opinion.  I was drawn to this set because of the soft, neutral colors.  I'm not big on bright colors for my eyes so this one is perfect for me.  I also had a $15 off a $50 Sephora purchase, plus I would get my birthday sample product, which I was dying for.  I love a good deal, so I was sold.  I kind of know this one will be under my tree.  

2.  Wristlet Clutch and Pencil Pouch from The Pleated Poppy.  

I've been wanted a Wristlet Clutch to put diapers and wipes in and throw in my diaper bag since before Leah arrived.  I just couldn't justify buying it though.  Right now The Pleated Poppy is doing 12 days of Christmas daily sales.  I think today is day 6 so you still have time to get a deal.  The day I saw the wristlet clutch on sale I jumped at it.  Plus I figured Santa needed a little help shopping for me.  I am so excited to organize my bag with these on Christmas morning.  

3.  A new tote bag to use as a diaper bag.  

I've pointed a few out to the hubby.  I have a few specifics that I want on it.  I want cute colors.  I want the top to zip, and I want long handles.  I bet he'll do a good job, right?  

4.  Coffee Mug and Rack

I have always had a thing for pretty mugs--tea cups or coffee mugs.  I like being able to start my day by choosing something pretty or fun.  I have to control myself purchasing these too often because shelf space is limited.  I've told hubby that he could buy me a new mug for Christmas.  The picture above is just an example.  To alleviate the storage problem, I've also asked the hubby build a little rack of hooks to put near the coffeemaker so I can keep a few of the cute mugs out.    

So that's my list.  What's on yours?