Christmas is going on all over this place!

After a couple of rough weeks, we are finally getting into the Christmas spirit around here. I just wasn't ready to be happy and celebrate the season when a dear family we love so much was experiencing so much pain. I know that so many of our friends have been feeling this exact same way, but we're all slowly but surely finally getting up our trees. We were reminded that Misty would want us to do this... for our children. Some of her & Jeremy's friends went to her house and decorated it for Christmas while Jeremy and the kids were away in Florida for a few days. That thought made me so happy and I just keep imagining Ella, Miles, and Griffin's eyes lighting up the moment they walked through that door! And even Jeremy's, too! :) Now I feel like celebrating Jesus' birth more than ever because I know that Misty is with our Jesus and smiling down at all of us celebrating & lifting praises to Him. This does not mean that our grieving is over; it will be a long process for everyone, especially Misty's family. But, she doesn't want us to pass up this chance to celebrate another beautiful season with our loved ones.

So, I'm now sitting here looking at my beautiful Christmas decorations and watching my sweet boy dance to the Praise Baby Joy to the World DVD in his super cute Santa p.j.s. Mason is loving looking at the lights on the tree, pulling the ornaments off the tree, and helping me wrap gifts. The first time he saw the tree all lit up, he looked at it all bright-eyed and loudly proclaimed, "Oh, Woooooow!!!" It was the funniest thang. He really was in awe. Last year he was just 7 months old, so we definitely didn't get to hear his verbal reactions. We also have our 3 stockings hanging on the mantle and my favorite nativity scene ever all set out on our foyer table. I didn't decorate as much as I normally do this year because I just wanted to keep it simple, and we had a little late start.

We're going to have a wonderful next couple of weeks celebrating Christmas & New Year's with our families and best friends and I cannot wait! We also have the sitting-on-Santa's-lap-experience-with-a-19 month old coming up in just a few days! Should be interesting! Here are a few pictures of Christmas around here and some random shots of Mason getting into the Christmas spirit!

Some of my favorite ornaments...

The super cute Santa I won at the Cookie Exchange last week! Thanks, Lisa Mason, for my ornament! It was the one that was fought over very seriously! :)

One of the sweet ornaments I bought at Hobby Lobby right after we found out we were having a boy... I bought these Dec. 2007

The Moore Family angels! My mom bought these for us pretty much the day we found out what we were having! She was somewhere that just happened to have a "Mason" ornament! I LOVE these so much!

The beautiful colored glass ornament I won at the Dirty Santa ornament exchange with my Joy Group in Nashville in Dec. 2007. This was from LeEllen Ezell, the very sweet mom of our friend Misty who just passed away. It is so special to me.

I love this "Joy" on my tree! I won this one at the ornament exchange with my Joy Group last year. This one is from Diana Southerland. I had all of our girls sign the back of it! :) I also love the little white Christmas tree I bought at Trees 'n Trends a couple of weeks ago. I don't love polka dots at all, do I? :)

Andrea came over with this ornament the night I told her it's a boy! :) She just happened to pick it up at Hobby Lobby before we even knew what we were having! Well, I guess she knew! ha!

Oh and of course, my most favorite ornament of all... the one I made at after-school care at my daycare on Bell Rd in Antioch when I was in first grade! This is the only one I have from my childhood, but I want to get some more from my parents!

Mason's First Christmas ornament! This one makes me the happiest! I bought this last year at Babies R Us.

Okay, these are some of my FAVORITE ornaments ever! I bought this one last year at Christmas Village, and another one this year! I want to collect enough to have an entire little tree covered in them!

I bought this "Noel" sign at Christmas Village two years ago. Carrie, can you remember the name of that booth that is based out of Memphis?

More Christmas Village favorites! Man, I hadn't realized how many ornaments I have bought there until now! I bought this baby carriage & cross two years ago. I also bought the baby carriage for my mom & mother-in-law since we were all so excited that our baby boy was coming!

Mason concentrating so hard on helping me wrap a present for daddy! It was soooo cute watching him!

Check out our huge mess we were making! Oh, but we were having the most fun!

Some presents Mommy wrapped! I am in love with this wrapping paper I bought at Christmas Village! I went crazy with it and bought like 7 rolls! I've been obsessed with fun wrapping paper the last few years.

More doo-dads from Christmas Village! I love these stakes. They're also fun gifts to give.

Our foyer

One of my most favorite gifts my mother-in-law has ever given me... She knew how much I loved nativity scenes, but that I did not have one, so she surprised me with this one a couple of years ago. They're Willow Tree figurines. She got this at Cracker Barrel, of course! :)

My angel from Southern Living At Home

My stocking door hanger... also Southern Living! Anyone seen any of their Christmas stuff lately? I haven't, but I want some more of it!

My sweet Snowman couple from Kirkland's that my mother-in-law bought me, and our 3 stockings! I bought these at Hobby Lobby a few years ago, but I want some new ones with our names embroidered on them! That'll be my fun thing to order for next year.

Mason looks sooo cute and like a big boy in this sweet little shirt I got him at Christmas Village this year! Look closely at the verse and the little details of the shirt. So sweet.

Mason watching one of his new Christmas DVDs I bought him at Wal-Mart last week. They had an aisle in the middle of all the Christmas stuff of a bunch of these $5 dvds. This one is a sing-along of all these random songs we don't really know! It's fun to watch though.

Daddy, give me back my Santa hat!

Bible-reading time in Mason's favorite chair in front of the Christmas tree

This was the first day we had decorated the tree and Mason was so mesmerized by all the ornaments! Yes, he was being sweet this day, but by now he has broken 2 of them and loves to yank them off the tree and throw them across the room! He actually just got out of time-out for doing that. Thank you.

Marc's birthday was November 30, so here we are (VERY late at night!) giving him birthday cards! Mason "picked him out" the sweetest card that says, "Daddy, you're my hero!"

Marc's big b-day gift this year was the Wii & Rock Band, from his parents! FINALLY we're up with the latest technology! He loves it! I think it's a stress-reliever for him; when he comes home from work he goes straight for his guitar! It's a sight to see in his dress clothes!

Mason doesn't know it yet, but Santa is bringing him his VERY own little guitar so that he can join his Daddy's band!

Go, Daddy, go!

I have some other fun Christmas posts coming up, but for now I'm gonna get off here and enjoy some yummy hot corn chowder & corn bread with my hubby! I'm DVR-ing lots of Christmas movies, so we're going to have a movie marathon tonight! :) Now, you get off here as well and go do something Christmas-y with YOUR family! Hugs & kisses!