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I'm in charge of decorating the Christmas tree.
Papa puts up the tree and hangs the lights and the wooden cranberry beads; Allie hangs a couple of ornaments and Mum choses where to put her bell. But I pick the ornaments and hang most all of themand I love it. Like wrapping presents, it's one of my favorite parts of the holiday season. This year, I went with a gold and red color scheme against a Fraiser fir. (The tree, by the way, is wonderful: we have a couple of heavy ornaments, but it's stiff upward branches handled them without difficulty.) Mixed in to the color scheme are a couple of the ornaments we put up every year: a set of porecelain teddy bears and cats, birth ornaments for Allie and myself, Papa's large collection of Starbucks ornamnets, Mum's bell, and in between a sprinkling of wooden mushrooms and golden bells.
I'm very happy with how it turned out. Therefore, I present Chirstmas picspam! Pictures of the tree, the gifts beneath (all wrapped by me), and a bonus picture of Jamie in her jingle collar. As always, click through for larger; for the full shot of the tree, click through for markers indicating specific ornaments.



Tonight was the first night of Hanukkah.
What you may not know of me: My mother was raised Catholic; my father, Jewish. My sister and I grew up with a cultural Jewish influence via my father's family (there's some more information here), and primarily celebrated Passover and Hannukah. We still celebrate Hannukah now, as a family. It's perhaps the best moments of the holiday season. Stripped of merchandizing, materializing, and decorating, it is simply a time of quiet and peace for us to gather as a family and light the menorah.
And tonight, the menorah was beautiful. (The reflection in the window, beside me and my camera, is my father.)

Papa puts up the tree and hangs the lights and the wooden cranberry beads; Allie hangs a couple of ornaments and Mum choses where to put her bell. But I pick the ornaments and hang most all of themand I love it. Like wrapping presents, it's one of my favorite parts of the holiday season. This year, I went with a gold and red color scheme against a Fraiser fir. (The tree, by the way, is wonderful: we have a couple of heavy ornaments, but it's stiff upward branches handled them without difficulty.) Mixed in to the color scheme are a couple of the ornaments we put up every year: a set of porecelain teddy bears and cats, birth ornaments for Allie and myself, Papa's large collection of Starbucks ornamnets, Mum's bell, and in between a sprinkling of wooden mushrooms and golden bells.
I'm very happy with how it turned out. Therefore, I present Chirstmas picspam! Pictures of the tree, the gifts beneath (all wrapped by me), and a bonus picture of Jamie in her jingle collar. As always, click through for larger; for the full shot of the tree, click through for markers indicating specific ornaments.




Tonight was the first night of Hanukkah.
What you may not know of me: My mother was raised Catholic; my father, Jewish. My sister and I grew up with a cultural Jewish influence via my father's family (there's some more information here), and primarily celebrated Passover and Hannukah. We still celebrate Hannukah now, as a family. It's perhaps the best moments of the holiday season. Stripped of merchandizing, materializing, and decorating, it is simply a time of quiet and peace for us to gather as a family and light the menorah.
And tonight, the menorah was beautiful. (The reflection in the window, beside me and my camera, is my father.)
