Oh, Christmas Dog!

Sorry I disappeared last week. On top of being in mourning (and not being very good company) we had house repair issues, and tech problems with my internet. All in all, a difficult week.

Nana is ready to decorate!

A new week is a new beginning though, so I bring you a taste of Christmas at my house including our resident goof, Nana. 

This is the first Christmas in years that I've had the chance to decorate a big tree. Most years Greg was either gone or I was traveling.

We are minus one beloved dog, but we made sure his picture was up on our tree.

Christmas trees are tricky to photograph. Unless you're a professional photographer (and I'm not) I don't think most people can capture the true beauty of their trees. There's too much to see and it's only when you see it in person can you appreciate all the tiny artwork.

My trees are a little like treasure hunts. There are the main decorations, the jewelry of the tree, but I also tuck in little keepsakes in between the boughs of the tree. My favorite part is when people find my secret treasures. It's like looking at a well known painting and finding a surprise detail that you never noticed before.

Greg wanted colored lights this year, and I chose soft gold and red as the main color palette. For the rest of the decorations, I opted for nostalgia and remembrance as my theme. Pictures of many of my past fur babies were placed in little frames. Ornaments and keepsakes that I've collected for decades finished the look.

The tree topper is probably the oldest ornament in my collection. It's almost 40 years old. It's simple, even cheesy, and terribly fragile, but every year I dutifully wrap it in tissue paper and bubble wrap and encase it in its own metal box. It was the first ornament we ever bought as a couple.

I'd like to think it's not the quality of the decorations but the memories they bring with them that counts.

Is your tree up yet? Do you have one treasured item that goes up year after year?

Don't forget to take a picture of your holiday table for our mini blog hop on December 29. Grab a badge and invite your friends to show off their holiday tables too. Just email me your blog url if you want me to send people your way.