sparkly, and twinkly, and lovely, oh my

As we drove an hour or so up the hill on Sunday, I alternated between feeling happy to be with my family and feeling car sick. I know why mountain roads are so windy, but I still wish they weren't. I also wish windy were spelled differently than windy, because there wasn't a single breeze, and because it just makes reading confusing.

Not long after we began our ascent I noticed my ears plugging up and thought about the two little girls in the backseat. Mia was asleep but Laci was looking out the window and chatting. She was excited to be cutting her first Christmas tree (yes, this is the first tree we've had since she was born).

Me: Laci, do your ears feel funny?
Laci: Yah.
Me: Well, if you open your mouth and yawn a little like this, it will help them feel better.

A few minutes later, she had figured out how to wiggle her ears and shouted, "Hey! My ears are talking!"

Well, yes I guess they are sort of talking. Kids say great things, don't they?

We found a Charlie Brown-ish tree this year. A young tree with floppy branches, but with lights and ornaments it looks fine. And to the girls, I'm sure it looks huge. Laci collected pine cones and needles, which she called her "treasures," and Mia insisted on walking until she fell in the mud. It was chilly but sunny and we only saw a few small patches of snow. It was probably one of our easiest tree expeditions to date (not that we have that many to compare to).

See that cute baby in the background?  She will fall in about 2.2 seconds.

I managed to find enough working light strands to do the job and have adorned the top half with ornaments. I experimented with a few unbreakables on the lower branches, but Mia is obsessed with ripping them off, so everything has been moved upward.

I made this cute tree skirt yesterday loosely following one of a hundred different tutorials on making a ruffle tree skirt. I cringe at these words, but yes, I found it on Pinterest. It's just strips of fabric and burlap, hot glue, and a cheap felt tree skirt as a base. No sewing!  It was a little time consuming, but easy enough. And for once, it turned out exactly how I wanted. I love it, and all the little pieces of burlap it distributed throughout the house.  To make the deal sweeter, I just found an identical skirt for sale on Etsy for $125.  Pretty sure I didn't even pay close to that.

There are snowmen and twinkle lights in the kitchen and living room, and other than some stockings, I'd say we are ready for Christmas around here. Oh, and presents. We need presents. Because I'm a procrastinator and always wait until the last minute.  But oh, how happy all these twinkly, sparkly things make me.