So, between visits to the hospital and making meals and trying to give the new mom and dad a bit of a break it's been a little busy for all of us.

But!

I finally got the tree up and the garland made and hung. Hooray! It's starting to feel more Christmassy around here. And I do love Christmas.

I absolutely LOVE our fireplace. It's what sold me on our condo when we bought it. We've had such cozy evenings curled up next to it, roasting hotdogs and marshmallows. I even tried roasting chestnuts one year. Yummy, but it ruined my pan. I thought cast iron was okay to stick in the fire! So here you have our mantle. We don't hang stockings but I do put up little advent treats every year. This year I sewed up little wrapping paper packages and stitched them onto some twine. I think they look super sweet! You may remember that idea from this post. This time I made shapes of stockings and mittens and stars (and one bell that didn't really look so hot, I guess being lazy and freehand sewing has it's drawbacks). So glad I finally got to make more of them. They're frickin' adorable! Nieces and nephews beware! You'll probably get a bunch of these at Christmas!

And finally our french doors leading out to the sun room. So pretty, they just call out to me to make garland and hang it. I tried a different way of making the garland this year. It worked pretty well, I think. My hands were super sappy and covered in green dye (sad to say) but it washed up really well. The secret I discovered when I started making fresh garland? Vim. Totally works. It's a little hard on your skin, but as someone who HATES sticky hands and fingers it's a relief. And before anyone comments about just wearing gloves, I tried. They just get in the way when doing all the wiring.

A close up of the garland. My mom gave me these ornaments years ago and I still love them. I love how they look drippy, especially with the beads.

So, now that most of the decorating is done it's time to get all those gifts made! Fire up the sewing machine! Sharpen those scissors! We've got some work to do!