home for the holidays.

i know i've already shown you all of my Christmas decorations here and here, but i was struck the other day by this particular view of them from the front door - looking through the front room into the fireplace room.

its pretty much everything Christmassey about my house all wrapped up in one frame... almost like a scene out of a Norman Rockwell painting. if you move in a little bit closer, you can see some of the details more clearly: Harold; decked out with colored (non-blinking) lights and an assortment of ornaments ranging from angels, cows, and penguins to wolverine and a half-eaten icecream cone. he stands guard over a giant pile of presents, most of them to be given away in the next few days. there's a rocking chair that used to belong to Mark's grandmother sitting in front of our fireplace, which is home to our handmade stockings with our names lovingly stitched onto them. and what's that up on the mantle?

oh, its just our super-awesome nativity scene. seriously, i'm in love. it was an early Christmas present from my mom and dad and i could hardly wait until December to display it. it can be rearranged in any number of ways, and on the back of each piece is a section of scripture that relates the part of the Christmas story that each character played. it reminds me of the type of nativity that Mrs. Repp would love to have as part of her collection, and i think its perfect for our little family.

its a little bit funny to me that this is my house. it just looks so very house-like. no not even that... it looks like home. it was only a year and a half ago that we bought this house and i wondered if and when it would ever feel like home, and now here we are... celebrating our second Christmas together in a home already filling with memories and traditions.

and i love it.