Christmas, Christmastime is here...

The Christmas season is here, and I am loving having a husband to share it with. I still marvel at the fact that we're a family, though it's just the two of us. I've been signing some thank you cards, "From our family to yours..." and still get a little thrill every time.

While we were in Michigan for Thanksgiving, Travis and I made a trip to Hobby Lobby for some of the foundational elements of family traditions; namely, stockings (made ever more exciting by the fact that we actually have a mantle from which to hang them). To the uninitiated, like Travis, Hobby Lobby during any holiday season can be rather overwhelming. We took it one aisle at a time, having the most fun in the stocking aisle where we each chose the stocking that best suited us, out of the probably 100 or so styles available, and a coordinating hook for each. We also picked out a nice tree skirt. On a subsequent shopping trip-turned shopping spree at Hobby Lobby on the way home from work one day last week I picked up some gold-themed ornaments for our tree along with various frames and pieces of artwork for general wall decor. On Saturday Travis and I had a great time decorating together. With each blank white wall we adorn our apartment feels more homey and lived in. We put up a big Christmas tree in the living room and hung ornaments from Brutus' antlers in the den. I'm hoping that by the end of the week the ribbon lights and bow I ordered online will come so that we can finish decorating the tree. Once most of the elements are in place I hope to "invite you over" by posting a few pics of the finished decor.

On Friday night Travis and I experienced the festivities associated with Forest Park's Holiday Walk and Festival of Windows (for which a number of stores along Madison Street feature live window displays, some of which we found amusing, a few slightly creepy). Saturday evening after our day of decorating we headed downtown to stroll through the Christkindlmarket in Chicago's Daly Plaza, a seasonal favorite of mine ever since I first visited a few years ago. I'm happily headed back there this coming Sunday as part of an annual "holiday hang" with one of my groups of friends. I'll have to remember to take my camera this next time and snap some shots of the HUGE Christmas tree and colorful vendor booths.