Yay Christmas is coming!

Aaaah the 1st of November, now it really is getting close to Christmas. When I worked in retail we would have the shop in Christmas theme now and the stock would all be rolling in. Farmers have their christmas shop all set up, I love looking at all the themed trees and dreaming.
My tree will need replacing this year, its a hand me down from the Hargoods and I'm going to pass it onto Playcentre so I can buy one that has heaps more places to hang decorations. eventually I'm going to have one of those beautiful trees all done in matching colours but for now I have a real modge podge collection. Each year I buy a new decoration for the boys so they can have their own collection when they leave home.

Ethan checks out his first decoration.

 

Ethan helps decorate the tree 2008

My friend Ann started this when she sent Western a decoration to hang on his crib in the hospital, (he was born on the 12 Dec) and I kept adding to it. I try to get something that they are interested in at the time and date the back of the decoration so they have a little history. We never had a christmas tree when I was a child so its really important to me that my kids get all that excitement of decorating the tree each year. We also have Santa evidence each year, Neil started that with flour foot prints the first year, then a message on the blackboard from Mr C the next year. Western is a bit sceptical now but Ethan still believes.

I just love this Norman Rockwell painting!

We watch the Polar Express each year which is a beautiful story about a boy who doesn't believe and gets taken on a magical train journey to the North Pole on xmas eve to get his faith restored.

A scene from Polar Express which stars Tom Hanks.

On Christmas Eve we go for a drive after dark and look at all the houses with lights, we have 3 or 4 close by that really go over board but are cool to look at. I would hate to pay their power bill!
I also get the boys to write their christmas wish lists, last year Western ruled his in half and put the expensive stuff at the top for Santa to bring and the cheap stuff at the bottom for us to buy! It was so classic, he had Xbox, PS2 and PSP on the top list. I have kept all the lists and will get around to scrapbooking them sometime. Thats another thing I love to do, scrapbook each christmas, I normally do a layout for the tree decorating, xmas morning and the gifts. I keep a journal and all the kids presents are listed in there as well. Anal isn't it but I can't remember much from my childhood, (probably a good thing) and I want them to remember lots. I have already started buying christmas scrapbook supplies for the stash cause I'm sure the stash I have isn't going to be enough LOL!

Xmas 2008, Aidan gave Western the Millienmum Falcon from Star Wars, it was an awesome present! This is the layout I made for that present that will never be bettered!

This year we are having Christmas lunch at Faye and Aidans place, it will their second xmas without Wayne but its nice that Faye feels she can host again. Last year we had Christmas at Lyndas house, she has a house full of mechanical xmas toys and always cooks a beautiful spread.

This is a very small selection of Lyndas Christmas toys. We now have to visit her each year once she has it all out as well!

Neil has banned family lunch at our house for a couple of years, he gets so stressed out with making sure the place is in good order before they all arrive. Last year we had christmas on Christmas Eve and all the kids ate their tea on the trampoline cause we had no room for them at the tables. It was fun!

Tea on the tramp....nobody bounce!

Now I must get going and start on my own xmas wish list so Santa doesn't forget me as he so often does! Maybe he knows me too well!