Remember that tree we bought last week? We finally got it up and decorated, over a week later. It seemed to take forever - the main issue was getting everybody home at the same time, with a window of opportunity wide enough for us to get the stuff unpacked and on the tree. After an extremely long day - church and meetings and a party kept me, Syd and the two boys on the go from 7:00 a.m. until about 8:00 p.m. (while the older girls got a bit of a break and went to a different party and hung out with Elijah's family), we managed to land at home long enough to pull the Christmas decorating together.

A few traditions: Always a real tree. Always a conflict over 'WHITE LIGHTS ONLY!'(my choice) and 'LOTS OF COLORED LIGHTS'!!!! (kids' choice). This year I was slightly victorious, as all but one strand of colored lights were dead in the water. Always the same wall hanging (crafted by my mom) over the mantle. Always Harry Connick, Jr. Christmas music blaring ('The Happy Elf' and 'Frosty the Snowman' are favorites) - maybe some Charlie Brown, too. Always sorting through a hundred hand-crafted elementary school projects that sink into a more unsettling state of deterioration with each passing year. Always a fight over who put the star on the top last year, and whose turn it should be this year (we sorted it out and the honor went to Sydni).

This year I started a new tradition, and said goodbye to the three or four headless shepherds, decapitated Joseph and the tattered wisemen from our several nativity sets. Inspired by another blog, I am combining all of the visitors to the holy birth scene and making one majestic nativity set. It's going to look quite strange, but I could no longer handle headless Joseph, valiantly trying to do his best to stand by Mary and Jesus in the manger. I trashed those who could no longer keep up, although I felt guilty, as if I was being politically incorrect by putting the appendage-challenged statuettes out of the picture. Like I have some problem with the handicapped or something.

Anyway, the tree is up. It's done. I made more chocolate chip cookies. We ate grilled cheese.

It was a good night, and that's one huge thing checked off my list.

Shannon was making some sort of weird face...but look at the tree! Weeeeeee!!!!!!

I'm not really sure what was happening here, but we seem to have Rudolph and...a couple of show girls... And look at that tree!!!!!!!

And this would be the reindeer, I believe...

Where were the boys while all this nonsense was happening, you might ask?

Well, I'm not sure. They were here, somewhere....

Stay tuned...