Christmas Tour of Homes 2011

I love that I just got to type those words into my title!

It’s here – it’s finally here! 

Those of you who have been reading for a while know that we didn’t get to celebrate Christmas in our own house last year.  We had sold our house in PA, moved to CT, and were living with my parents for an undetermined time (9 months and one day, but who was counting?) until finally, finally, God brought us to our house that we live in now. 

So I didn’t get a chance to decorate for Christmas last year.  I clicked through the 2010 Tour of Homes and tried not to cry and just prayed SO hard that God would give us a house soon.

Well, here I am!  A testament to God’s faithfulness, that’s for sure. 

Let’s get started!

 

First of all, welcome to our house!  If you were here in real life, you’d probably hear the “Tender Tennessee Christmas” station playing on Pandora when you walked in.  it’s a great mix of old-school songs and newer ones.  I really, really like it –you should try it out! 

{By the way, you should be able to click on any picture to enlarge it.}

So, let’s start with our living room.  We don’t have an entry way (just a coat closet!), so this dresser/hutch is the first thing you see when you walk in the front door. 

I made a SUPER easy ornament garland (I promise I will post a tutorial some time!) and then set my Willow Tree nativity on it so it’s the first thing you see when we walk in.  You can see how I made the burlap trees here. 

 

Moving on to the hallway, I just topped Chris’s grandma’s antique mirror with 4 sparkly berry sprigs I got this year from Michael’s. 

 

In the bathroom, I printed out this free page from Jones Design Company and popped it in an Ikea frame.  I put extra ornaments and sprigs from the tree into a yard sale jar. 

Oh, and keeping our feet warm is this super fun mat from Target ($2.50 this year). 

 

In our dining room, I just took branches from the lower part of our tree and added more berry sprigs and two giant ornaments that I found at Goodwill last year.  I made another ornament garland (what can I say, they’re addicting!).  Can you spot our little elf? ;)

In the frame is our Christmas card from 2007.

 

On top of the kitchen island, I took ornaments I got 90% off last year at Target (loooove the bright colors) and put them in a Goodwill cylinder. 

    

 

The candle and plate on my oven are both from Goodwill!

 

I took a piece of super-ugly “art” from Goodwill and rolled it with chalkboard paint this summer to make a moveable chalkboard. 

 

I’ve started putting up Christmas cards on my new corkboard from Home Goods (which I am totally in love with, by the way).  I would love it if I ran out of space by Christmas! ;)

 

I looooove this pillow I got at Goodwill a few years ago (and it’s sitting on my Pier One via Goodwill chair!)  Yeah, are you sensing a theme in my house?!  Mama loves her a good thrift store.  lol

Here is my sweet baby boy sitting with it TWO years ago!!

 

This photo is a little dark because it’s right in front of the window, but here’s a little wintery vignette I put together, all from stuff I already had around the house – and most of it I’ve had for years! 

    

 

On top of this bookcase I just took red tree garland (clearance from CVS years ago) and put it around a white candle.  The red and blue kid frames are from Goodwill and I’ll let Luke keep them in his room in another year or two. 

    

This picture was our Christmas card from 2009.  I’m still totally in love with it.  Pretty sure no matter how hard I try I won’t be able to top it, ever. :)

Love my little polar bear in front of his very first tree! :)

 

Since this is the first Christmas EVER that we’ve spent Christmas morning together as our own little family, I finally bought Christmas stockings! I found these at Target this year for $13. I love that they’re traditional and cozy-looking. And they’re lined on the inside, so there’s no worry about tearing a hole in them with gifts.

And no, the fact that there’s four stockings does NOT indicate any kind of announcement from me! :) I just bought four on the faith that God will grace us with another baby at some point in the future. I am literally aching for another baby and and praying so hard that by next Christmas we will have another little one in our home. (We are in the process (!) of adopting from the state foster care system – yes, I know a post on that is loooong overdue!)

Oh and the stockings aren’t hung yet because I have a two-year-old boy.  Enough said. :)

 

Last but not least, here’s our tree!  Growing up, we always got our tree from the same farm (a old family friend), and this year we got ours from there as well.  A lot of my inspiration this year for decorating came from those 90% off ornaments I mentioned before!  I love the lime green and sparkly red look.  I added more of those Target ornaments to our tree, as well as our other sentimental ones that make an appearance each year. 

I got the ribbon 50% off from Michael’s and used this video tutorial to make the bow. It reminds me of Dorothy’s slippers every time I look at it. :)

I’ve been buying Luke a Hallmark ornament each year.  In 2009 I bought him the jungle one (which was perfect because his room was jungle-themed).  Last year I got him one of those miniature pull toys. 

    

This year he got Curious George, but he accidentally broke it and I haven’t had a chance to super-glue it yet.  Life with a toddler! :)

I love having a little bell on the top of my tree, in honor of It’s a Wonderful Life, of course. :)

My favorite ornaments, hands down, are these two of our sweet boy.  These pictures were taken in December of 2008 and they will always be so special to me.  Being newly pregnant at Christmas made Mary’s story so much more real to me than it ever had been before. 

    

Well, that’s our house, everyone!  I hope you enjoyed the tour! 

 

MERRY CHRISTMAS 2011!!

Ridiculously excited to be Linking to:  

The Nester’s Christmas Tour of Homes 2011

Kelly’s Show Us Your Life Christmas Homes Tour 2011