Getting Ready for Christmas!

I was just going through my Baby Clay December 2009 picture folder on my computer and realized I have only taken 10 pictures of him so far this month... a TRAGEDY, I tell ya!!! Anyways, I'm sure the next few days are going to be filled with so much picture taking, Baby Clay is going to run and hide the next time he sees a camera!

This year we are hosting Christmas Eve dinner at our house for Mark's side of the family filled with turkey and all the trimmings. Then Christmas night, my side of the family will be coming over for the oh-so-traditional Christmas Chili. I'm feeling a little like Betty Crocker right now... I'll be making Pecan Cranberry stuffing (Ok, so it's stuffing from a box... but it's Williams-Sonoma stuffing, so it's gotta be good!), green bean casserole, deviled eggs, creamed corn (yeah, this is frozen) and then some monkey bread for Christmas morning breakfast! Thank goodness my work gave me a smoked turkey for Christmas... I don't think I'm ready to try my hand at cooking one of those. Other than a few things I've got to pick up from the store... we're ready for Christmas!!!

We went back and forth on where to put the Christmas tree this year... with a curious 15 month old, I was leaning towards our empty dining room where no one goes, but we'd miss out on enjoying the tree. So we ended up putting it in the family room. We put non-breakable ornaments on the bottom because we knew it would be re-decorated by a little elf. He's done pretty good with it... he's had to go to time-out a few times for ripping ornaments off the tree, but for the most part, he just looks.

And here is our Christmas tree... It's a little on the scrawny side for the big huge room it's in (it's a 7 foot tree in a 2-story room). I'm thinking we need to get a new one for next year! And you might notice the lack of presents under the tree... Well, Clay has learned how to unwrap gifts, so we decided that it might be best if we left them in a room he doesn't go into to avoid re-wrapping.

Hmmm... someone is plotting their evil plan to rip the ornaments off the tree... (Notice there are not very many around the bottom. You also can't tell from this picture, but the entire strand of lights around the bottom has somehow become rendered inoperable. I'm sure it has nothing to do with ornaments being ripped from the lower branches...)

He's going in for the kill! At least it is one of his ornaments he's going for...

And this is where he ends up after ripping the ornament off the tree. I'm not exaggerating when I use the word "rip"... it's usually followed by an evil laugh and then he runs off thinking he can get away with it if we can't catch him.

In closing, we would like to wish everyone a VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! We hope Santa is good to you and puts lots of good things in your stocking...

I'm very fond of our new stockings this year!!! Here's a close up...($15 from Pottery Barn Kids... Love them!!!)

Clay's is the one in the middle and I'm sure it will be the fullest!

Merry Christmas!!!!!