Decked.

If I could explain why I'm having such a tough time writing this year...  I don't know if I'm just busy, but I find myself simultaneously missing blogging and struggling with just what I would say anyway.  It has been a wonderful season already this year, and I haven't said two words about it.

Last Christmas was such a fog to me; I have just a few vague impressions of what we did but very few actual memories.  And probably only because I wrote about it to begin with - that should teach me something!

We've been busy at our house.  Halls have been decked.  Stockings have been hung.  The Elf has been reporting to Santa. Parades have been attended.  It's such a fun time of year!  

I don't think I have any pictures from last year of the decor of our house, probably because we hadn't yet done anything and the house was still in rough shape.  So here's a little sneak peak at our Christmas mantel, which - for the first time in my holiday color-wheel - is going blue.  

TA-DA!

Alright, so I know the stockings don't quite match, but they're what we've got.  Until all our family members get here (I'm looking at you, future hypothetical children), I don't see us replacing those any time soon.

I started with a simple, store-bought greenery garland, to which I added a few embellishments.  am loving the turquoise-y and silver, so different and festive!

I bought this lovely little tree at Target, and it was originally white.  It didn't quite fit the bill, so a little spray paint and voila! 

Casey helped me hang the beads along the mantel, I love them.  It adds just a bit of traditionalism to the somewhat non-traditional design.  

On the other side, our little Ellie the Elf landed here after making her report to the Big Guy.  She's loving the mantel just as much as I am.

I liked the way it was coming together, but I felt like I had just a little too much unused space.  

A few ornament and a little string solved that problem in a hurry.  I like the height element they add, and they're attached in the ceiling with a white push-pin you can't even see.  Fab.

So, that's how we're decking our halls this year.

Even though traditional colors of red and gold still rule the living room.  Along with a few "strategically placed" ornaments to keep the kids off the tree.

As you can see, the Christmas tree has taken more of a beating than usual this year!