I'm dreaming of a white Christmas...

We had our first real snow of the Christmas season this past weekend. To say it was wonderful is an understatement. While I love the tingle of sunshine on my skin, the older I get the more I long for the crisp smell of winter. There is something so magical about a snowy Christmas season, and the fact that we got it the first weekend of December was an absolute thrill!

Many of my all time favorite childhood memories come from the Christmas season. When I was little, before my Aunt Lillian moved to live next door to us, she would visit over Thanksgiving. The Friday after gorging ourselves on turkey was spent preparing for "Lillian's Christmas" that Saturday. Even though Aunt Lil has been home for the past eighteen years or so, the tradition of decorating the day after Thanksgiving has remained.

I'm posting pictures from my phone. A point I want to make clear in case my amazing husband actually reads today's post. The truth is I'm getting better shots with my phone these days than with my camera. THAT is why all I want for Christmas is a fairly descent camera! (Michael, if you read this, please note the urgency!)

Our upstairs tree is pictured here. It's pretty much as themed of a tree as I will ever have. I stuck with traditional Christmas colors: red, green, silver, and gold. While I love the eclectic trees I grew up with (so much so, that our downstairs tree has multi-color lights with eclectic ornaments), I always wanted to have a tree that matched. Hello, Type-A personality!

I bought this ornament last year from Things Remembered for our first Christmas together. Not only does it have my favorite picture from our wedding in it, but it also has "For ever. For always." (the inscription in our wedding rings) with our initials inscribed on the opposite side. I love, love, love, LOVE it!

 Knowing how much of a sucker I am for anything monogrammed, my mom got this "S" ornament for us last year. It proudly sparkles at the top of our tree.

 It's a Wonderful Life is one of my all time favorite movies. In fact, if you told me I could only watch two movies for the rest of my life I would choose White Christmas and It's a Wonderful Life. The fact that "Every time a bell rings an angel gets his wings" makes each bell at Christmas a little bit more special for me. This ornament was from my parents as well. A few years ago we went as a family to the Music Box Theater in Wrigleyville to see the White Christmas and It's a Wonderful Life double feature, complete with an organist and sing-a-long. Mom found these ornaments that year and gave them to the three of us to complete the memory.

I am sure to have many more Christmas posts as the season continues. Some of the highlights for this Christmas include holiday shows, parties, and cookie baking. I can't wait to document (with my phone until I hopefully get a new camera) and share this Christmas with you!

May your days be merry and bright, and may all your Christmases be white!