The TREE...

There may be something wonderful about going someplace to chop down your very own tree every year.  Or to go to the same special farm to pick out your tree, and for those of you who get to do that, I try not to be jealous of you and think terrible and evil thoughts.  Nor do I smile slightly to myself as I click my three tree segments into place, plug my pre-lit/strung lights in and step back when the whole thing is up and done in under 10 minutes, and I only have to vacuum needles up once the entire season.  Sad, I know.

What is a tree without the star or the skirt? Those go on first and then we release the hounds, or rather the children, to their decorating.  I only have two rules: 1) only one ornament per branch; 2) anything with a picture/hand print goes on the back of the tree (to save on "space").

The boys put theirs up as high as they can, while the girls just put theirs where ever they want.  

It still leaves the top a bit bare, but that's where Eric and I will go back and fill in with our family ornaments, at least the most fragile ones.  The tree is starting to get a bit full, we may have to start moving more ornaments to the back of the tree in the coming years.  But I love it, I love an over packed kids' tree.  They are full of memories.  This year the boys got another Lego ornament, and the girls each got a second Hello Kitty.

And we did straighten the star up when all was said and done, it does look a bit wonky right now.

As for this little vignette, let me explain.  We have a set of nutcrackers that sit high up over the landing above the foyer.  Davin is obsessed with the story of the Nutcracker, not the ballet, but the actual story of the cursed soldier who comes to life at night to battle the rat king and his minions.  So when the nutcrackers come out each year, they bring with them their own magic, and at night the epic battles begin once again.

This year Davin thought that the Nutcracker needed an army of his own, so he set up two platoons and placed them under the direction of the Great Napoleon! He even armed them with guns and cannons.  Thank goodness for innumerable Playmobil soldiers to help battle the rat kind and his hordes.