The Motivation To Be Festive

I'm taking Christmas to the next level here at Seven Presidents. Some years I'm more gung ho than others, but I think the addition of our little one has me excited about the holiday this year, even if at 5 months old she's too small to really appreciate it. Reminds me of the Christmas episode of "Up All Night," Will Arnett's new show. That show pretty much nails the experience of being a regular person who has a baby and doesn't totally lose their identity. I find myself laughing out loud at least once every episode. But I digress.


My mom keeps offering me holiday decorations that my Grammy made, and I keep accepting. Her handmade decorations hold a ton of sentimental value and precious memories, which is probably why I've always been so hard on new store bought Christmas decorations. Grammy set the bar pretty high. 


I got the extra parts of her ceramic village (except for the church, which seems appropriate). I set it up and meant to take a picture because -- what do you know! -- President Obama stopped by the village to shake hands and drum up votes for 2012. I also acquired a calico gingerbread garland that is hanging over my entryway where I hang our stockings. (Poll: Do you think stockings are just for hanging on Christmas Eve?). 

I stopped by my mom's yesterday and she gave me a stick wreathe to decorate (again, I should have taken a photo) and an idea for the pendants in my kitchen, which I actually managed to photograph. And notice that pot rack in the background? It's been about three years in the making. I finally found one I liked from Crate & Barrel and my dad put it up for me. (It's serious business. Because pots are so heavy you have to make sure it's in a joist.) I couldn't take a picture of the whole room for you to get a better idea of how it looks because there were dishes everywhere. But just trust me that it is an awesome addition to the house. It looks pretty cool and it frees up an entire corner cabinet, which now holds all the extremely tall cereal boxes, bottles of olive oil, cans of formula, and small appliances that were cluttering up the counter. Serenity now! And Merry Christmas, if I don't talk to you before the big day.