Preparing for Christmas

I guess the snow has gotten to me. Just a week ago, I was being a bah-humbug and not thinking about putting up a tree until the week before Christmas. The thought of rearranging toys and dragging things out of the garage seemed overwhelming. Then yesterday I started looking at the calendar. The week after Thanksgiving is very busy. The weekend after is packed. And it's all with holiday events!

I want to enjoy the holidays, not dread them. I want to take time to look at the decorations, not stress about putting them up.

So I decided to start preparing now.

Some toys were moved upstairs and some were moved to the basement. There is now an empty corner in our living room just waiting for a tree with sparkly lights. Aahhh. Won't that be lovely? Assuming, of course, that I can somehow convince Owen and Rachel to not touch and grab the ornaments.

I was imagining our walls decorated with the various holiday artwork when all of a sudden, I realized something . . . our living room walls have no nail holes! This had been a conscious decision after painting when we were preparing to sell. Bare walls help a buyer visiualize their stuff on the walls and you're not supposed to have family pictures up or, heaven forbid, a buyer might realize another family lives there.

At the time, I was prepared to do whatever was suggested to make it more appealing to a buyer. I'm over it now. Let the walls be filled with decorations! There is always spackling and touch-up paint, right?

I love Christmas. I love pulling out special decorations that I only see for a few weeks each year. I love the songs. I love hot chocolate. I love making plans to see family and friends. I love making Christmas lists. I wish I didn't love that part as much as I do but it's true. I'm still very much a kid on Christmas morning. I love to give presents but I also love to open presents.

I feel myself anticipating Christmas with enthusiasm and I think, "Welcome back, me!" And now it's time to deck the halls.