christmas tour of homes 2010

the nester and kelly are both hosting a christmas tour of homes this year and {for once} i'm actually early! i decided to go ahead and post my pictures and then monday i'll link up to everyone.

so in the meantime, grab a cup of hot cocoa or warm cider and welcome to our home!

our front porch

LOVE my wreath! :-)

our foyer

really love this tree in our foyer

dining room...fruit tree centerpiece; the table runner matches the tree skirt for the tree in the foyer and our stockings. they were birthday presents from my mom and sister last year and i LOVE them!

"the stockings were hung by the chimney with care..."

my willow tree nativity is so precious to me. it was a wedding present from my mom and my sister and i simply adore it!

one of our newest Christmas decoration additions this year is this tree in our den. i wanted it to be fun and playful... hence the colored lights, top hat as the topper, the santa bag and the "oversized" presents underneath. i also incorporated a lot of joel's ornaments from his childhood.

our kitchen table centerpiece and our gingerbread house masterpieces (hubs, bff marissa, and i worked so hard on those houses ;)

our advent calendar--this is super special because it was a gift to us from my parents...it was a family tradition in my house growing up and mom wanted to give it to us for future alley grandchildren ;). the little trinkets and toys hidden inside each day also hold special meaning to us so it's all around one of my favorite parts of our Christmas decorations!

"santa, i can explain..."

yes, we believe in santa claus in our household ;)

more importantly, though, "happy birthday, Jesus!"

if you stand in the kitchen (right behind the ledge) Ho, Ho, Ho reads like Oh, Oh, Oh. so funny and sometimes so appropriate during the craziness of the season!

i'm so excited about my "happy everything" plate because you trade out the little tile at the top of the plate according to the holiday or season.

even our little paisley was in the Christmas spirit!

thank you for visiting our home. praying you have a happy and joyful Christmas surrounded by family and friends. happy birthday, Jesus!