Tour of our Christmas Home

Christine started this tour of blog homes, so Welcome to mine. Don't forget to stomp the snow off your feet, here in Minnesota, we've already gotten quite a bit of snow.

The to the right of the door welcomes you. Some neighborhood kids were selling these wreaths last year and my dh bought one.

The garland up the stairs does look much prettier at night. I like Christine's much better!

My Christmas card basket that transforms into a fruit basket after Christmas. Can you see your card? I need to hang all the pictures on a door or something so people can see them!

Here are the tins on top of the fridge, one filled with cookie cutters and the other filled with snowmen that the kids play with and are supposed to be set out somewhere, but I have no room and the kids take them all over the place! So they are taken out sometimes to play with!

This is our Christmas book pile. I started just taking out one book per day the beginning of Advent but last week just took them all out. They are always this messy and usually are on the floor and on the couch.

Our tree! Yes, it is real. We do real. But real trees are pretty spendy now, ours was like $69! A good friend told me the day they get their tree they put 2 cans of sugar pop, 7-up or Mountain Dew and put it in the base with HOT water and the tree will last longer. So far, this tree has hardly lost anything!! SO, I'd say it works!! Usually by now, we are wondering if it's going to make it to Christmas!

Our tree topper. We always had an angel but then her head popped off and I glued it for years, until 2 years ago, I finally I bought a star that lit up...well that lasted 2 years and last year it broke or quit lighting. This year I bought this...I really like it. It goes well with our Christmas reading. (The legend of the Poinsettia)

These St Nicholas people my MIL made, she also made the 2 little angels and most of the ornaments on our tree! She is very crafty. It's really a gift! The wooden horn blowing angel was a wedding
gift made by a friend.

Our Santa kneeling before baby Jesus, the true meaning of Christmas.

Our Nativity set also a wedding gift.

This is one of our Advent countdowns. We have many, even more than I am going to show!

This, my MIL made a few years ago, we have little papers in each pocket telling us something special to do on each day. I love this, it's one of my favorite things!

Another countdown, Joseph and Mary traveling down to the cave each day they move another velcro spot and at the end we will add the other pieces!

Our play nativity set. This has gone through all the kids. It's another favorite.

Another play set!

And another play set. My good friend Lisa handed this one down to my children.

You will find crafts galore in our Christmas home.

Our table centerpiece.

Our Advent wreath and more crafts!

This is our Jesse tree. The picture was taken a while ago, so there are many more crafts around it now and more symbols, but you get the idea. This is in our school room.

Presents under the tree, notice the many ornaments on one branch. The kiddos decorated the tree and like all the like ornaments together.

Well, that is it. As one daughter was explaining to her sister the other night on the way home from Grandma's Christmas, (while she was crying she didn't get very many presents-it was 10:30 pm and she had run out of gas) Christmas is not about presents, it's about Jesus and his birth.

"How many observe Christ's Birthday; How few His precepts! O, 'tis easier to keep holidays than commandments." -Benjamen Franklin

May we all discover the true meaning of Christmas and prepare our hearts for Him.