the holly & the ivy

Well, the Christmas season is upon us. I've been Christmas shopping (mostly online) & Christmas crafting for a few weeks, but this weekend we did a bunch of FUN Christmas things, like put up our tree & our little village, hang the stockings, and watch Kate enjoy it all! There is simply nothing like seeing old traditions through new little eyes. Kate actually went out to pick up the tree with Josh. She came back home with a little branch & proudly informed me that this was HER Christmas tree. In a bit we saw another branch on the floor which I was informed was Momma's Christmas tree, and then when Dad brought in the *real* one. . . well, that was Dad's Christmas tree. What a cutie! She LOVED trimming the tree & wanted to play with each ornament. Josh has an ornament for each year of his growing up years, and many of them are really cute -- Snoopy, the Pokey Little Puppy, airplanes, firetrucks with mouse firemen. Kate got a real kick out of getting them out of their boxes & playing with each one before picking out a place on the tree for it. We're continuing the tradition of an ornament for Kate each year, and I had a lot of fun showing her the two ornaments that belong to her.

Saturday began with a bit of Christmas portrait taking. Our smiley, sweet little girl turned into Miss Sourpuss just in time for us to have the camera pointed at us. The whole morning she was so excited about taking pictures with "Lya, Lawren, Ben, Auntie Jen. . run out of breath. . continue the litany of family members." But, somehow, the unfamiliar surroundings & the chilly weather combined to make her ill at ease. Finally, some brilliant lady (Jen) remembered the candy she had brought & after scads of Smarties, Kate became a bit better performer. Oh well. Se la vie. We did get some good shots, thankfully! In fact, it was not just the smarties that affected our smiles, but some kerrazy antics by Auntie Jen & a moose. I think she had Josh & I giggling, too.

So, this is how the morning started off. . . mom & dad looking pretty nice, Kate looking inscrutably at the camera.

Post-smarties

One of the better shots -- all three of us actually smiling!

Also post smarties, but if you look carefully, the smartie actually showed up IN the picture!

Later that afternoon, Kate helping Dad fix the lights.

The Finished Product! Do you think I could have a tree up all year?

A little bonus footage: my belly. I'll admit, most of that bump is actually made up of unbuttoned pants, a bella band folded over twice, a T-shirt, and a wooly sweater! But, hey!