We drank hot cider & turned on the classic Christmas music which, to me, is the only music that really makes it feel like Christmas. I'm sorry but most of the newer holiday music just doesn't usher in the same nostalgic flood of Christmas memories like Dean Martin, Judy Garland, Gene Autry, Bing Crosby, Kay Starr, Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Bob Helms, Nat King Cole, Burl Ives & in my family, Kenny Rogers & Dolly Parton's Once Upon A Christmas album. When I hear those songs I am instantly transported back to my childhood. Olivia & I were discussing Christmas music the other day & wondered what people listened to before the familiar songs that we now call classics came out? Now, don't get me wrong, there are a few current artists that I like; Josh Groban, Sleeping At Last, Mercy Me, Phil Wickham & Zooey Deschanel all have some good Christmas songs too. They just don't have the same sentimental affection as the older songs of my childhood.
As per tradition, before we put the older ornaments on the tree the kids got to open their new 2017 ornaments. Each one represented something that was significant in their lives this year.
Ashlyn got a Hamilton ornament because I took her to see the musical, which she had been obsessing about, when it came to San Francisco.
I searched high & low for a scooter ornament for Landon. He spent almost every single day this summer riding his scooter, watching YouTube videos about scooters or taking apart & rebuilding his scooter. I couldn't find one anywhere so I purchased a Tech Deck scooter & made one myself. Now the only issue is that Landon constantly wants to take the ornament off the tree to play with it.
Olivia got a kayak ornament to commemorate not only her going camping with us in Tahoe this year but also her first camping trip ever .
Chris & I have enough ornaments together to fill an entire tree but we also have all of the kids ornaments that they have collected over the years. We have joked about getting a second tree just so we can fill it with our own ornaments. Usually, we just pick & choose our favorite ornaments & let the kids put up all of their ornaments. Chris is usually the one organizing & handing out ornaments...
but we made sure he put on some of his own ornaments too.
This is Pepper's first Christmas & I'm pretty sure she was confused as to what we were doing. She wandered around smelling things & checking out the ornaments while we put them on the tree. And as if we had a curious toddler in the house, we tried not to put any ornaments too close to the bottom of the tree so that she wouldn't be able to take them off & break them.
Finally, Chris put the finishing touch, his Santa tree topper, on the tree.
I enjoy my house so much more with the tree & twinkle lights. As much as I normally dislike the fact that it gets dark so early during the winter, the Christmas tree in the corner makes it bearable. It instantly brightens up our dark living room & it seems so much more warm & cozy. It really just makes me want to stay indoors & curl up with my family watching Christmas movies or listening to Christmas music.
The Christmas season is here! I'm trying to enjoy all these good parts & remember all the things that make this season so magical. Maybe that will counteract the nagging thought in the back of my head about how all of this will be over in a matter of weeks. For now I will linger a little longer in the light of the tree & soak up as much of this season as I can.
No comments:
Post a Comment