Deckin' the Halls

I'm supposed to be cleaning the house right now - that was the reason I set my alarm so early. But, here I am - caught by the enticement of the computer, unable to resist catching up with you all. (And, hey, it's a lot quieter than the vacuum cleaner for the rest of my sleeping family).

On Sunday we purchased our Christmas trees. We've been going to Campbell Farms for nearly a decade now, very simple - LOTS of trees, and cheaper than practically any other place we've seen. (Especially for Nobles and Fraisers). Here's a few shots, you can tell it's nearly dark by the time we're done.


We've begun getting two trees each year - a small one for our "bonus room" (which is really just the other half of our kitchen), and a larger one for our living room. I grew up with every different kind of ornament put on the tree, making it very festive. However, when we got married, I wanted something a little thematic. So, I made salt-dough stars and painted red dots on them with fingernail polish (working with little money folks!), and they've been part of our "homespun" tree ever since. However, their numbers have diminished over the years with kids and dogs deciding to eat them along the way. Nowadays, we do both - the kids decorate the bonus room tree with all of the ornaments my parents have given us each year, and I tackle the living room tree.

This year, Brayden made a special contribution. He learned how to crochet from a boy in his class (the naughtiest bully of the grade, whodathunk?) - and since he does it around his fingers, the scarfs he creates are just a little too narrow. However, I thought it might be just perfect for a garland - and sure enough, with some crimson chenile yarn - it looked very sweet. Way to go, buddy!




=) Challenge Day One: The smiles I contributed came from filling out a comment card at Target for the harried cashier, lots of small talk with whoever I came in contact with (generally regarding my own goofiness), and letting a gentleman enter into the line of traffic who was clearly caught off guard by my willingness. It's kind of an addictive habit once you get going - I had a lot of fun yesterday.

As for John, he actually lost some sleep Sunday night thinking about his ideas. So, yesterday, he pulled the "Pay It Forward" at Starbucks by paying for the drink behind him as well as contributing some extra money so it could continue for a while if certain folks chose not to do it. While he didn't ask to be kept abreast of the results, I have a feeling the barista (who he's gotten to know well) will give him an update today as to how it went...