WE ARE DECORATED FOR CHRISTMAS - AT LAST

Only 17 days left until Christmas - and I take our trees down the day after Christmas - so it is a good thing that we have the decorating done. I like to have the house completely cleaned - top to bottom, for New Year's day - a good start for a new year - and I can't clean with trees and decorations all through the house.


I think we'll start with a tour of the christmas trees. The big tree is in the living room - and is decorated with the family ornaments that we have gathered over our 44 years together. I keep thinking that the kids will be taking some of their ornaments home with them - but so far we have gotten to keep them all.

These are Sally and Linus - for the Peanuts characters - Don bought Sally for me - I bought Linus for him - and we always hang them together on the tree - and I always say "Isn't he the cutest thing!?!" - every year. It is a fun tradition.


Our youngest daughter made this one from a christmas card and popsicle sticks when she was in third or fourth grade. Every year when she sees it she says - you don't really have to put that on the tree - but I think secretly she likes it. It is one of our favorites.


I made a lot of felt ornaments when our kids were little - and this mouse is still in great shape, though his eye is beginning to fade a bit.


We do a family ornament exchange every year - this was one that our son and daughter-in-law gave to me a couple years back. We had cardinals nesting right outside our living room window when we lived in Kansas - about 180 years ago.


One year Don bought our kids four antique car ornaments - one of them has gone home with our son - the other three are still with us. They are quite fragile and often have to have repairs before they can go on the tree.


My mom gave me two of these Eskimos - from when she lived in Alaska - though she didn't live near any Eskimo villages. There is a girl and a boy - I just adore them. I love how the lights from the tree reflect off this ornament.


Don has collected bell ornaments for years - these are two of his collection. He also has some bell lights on the tree and a string of vintage plastic bell lights hung on the china cabinet. The kids are always on the lookout for new bell ornaments for him.


These three ornaments were given to my by my father when I was 5. They have shiny fiber wings and used to have angel hair under their feet - but that is mostly gone now. One of the angels has lost her wings. They are only about 1 1/2 inches tall - such darling little ornaments and I've never seen any other like them.

That's a little tour of our family tree. Now on to the teddy bear tree. I have collected teddy bear ornaments for years and years - and my tree is completely full of them. The tree looks very red this year - with the red strings of beads and all the red on the ornaments.



And a light that won't light on one side - is the Grinch nearby? I noticed after I took the picture that some of the lights are not working -guess I'll have to dig around in there and find the end and put in a new fuse.


A yellow PomPom teddy - with a satin lollipop. Our oldest daughter gave this one to me her first year in college. His yellow color cheered me up!!


There are almost 200 teddy bear ornaments on the tree (sure you can come over and count them - we'll have a cup of peppermint tea while you count).

I painted several wooden ones, cut out by a friend down the road that could cut the tiniest pieces and make them perfect every time.


A tiny sno-cone teddy ornament from our youngest daughter.


These two guys on a bike are always a hit.


And of course we need someone cooking, and a candy cane or two.


It wouldn't be a quilter's tree without a quilting teddy bear.


And one bird ornament - it is the "partridge in a bear tree" - all the bears love it - and take very good care of their partridge.


And this last picture has nothing to do with teddy bears, but I just had to add it. I made these two ornaments for Don last night - of our grandsons - on the left is Jahn-Zyel (his first grade picture) and on the right is Ben - this was taken at the pumpkin farm in October. I thought Don would hang these on the main christmas tree - but he loved them so much he took them to work to put on his desk. He'll bring them back in time to put them on the tree for christmas day - which by the way -we just found out will be here at our house and both girls and their families will be here - hurray for christmas and families!!!