Declarations of Decorations

It must have been yesterday’s public admission of my procrastination that did it.  I finally got my act together and put out some Christmas decorations (not all, by any means, but at least the tree is done).  I was originally going to decorate the tree when the girls were asleep, figuring the combination of toddler fingers and breakable objects wasn’t ideal, but I was dragging this morning and needed to do something to keep me awake and keep the girls entertained.  I was pleasantly surprised at how well the girls did with the decorating process.  They loved choosing a tissue-wrapped bundle out of the ornament box, helping me to carefully unwrap it, and then carrying it over to the tree where they would advise me as to its perfect location (which was invariably toddler eye-level).  I shared with them the beloved memories that accompanied some of the ornaments, but they were more impressed by any decorations with moving parts than they were my moving stories. 

I found it amusing at how the girls’ personalities were expressed during the decorating process.  Susie, true to form, focused on one or two ornaments and intently studied and poked at them, content to stay in her own little world.  Becky, on the other hand, raced back and forth between the box and the tree, excitedly narrating our every move, instructing me on proper placement, and informing Susie of the ornaments she should have been choosing if she were not otherwise occupied. 

Here are the girls admiring one of my childhood ornaments, a toy soldier with a pull-string:

Here they are with their hand-knit (by my talented aunt, not yours truly) stockings:

And here they are enjoying one of the best parts of the holiday, the Christmas books:

You can see that their fascination with the seasonal books lasted all day, pairing nicely with their newfound fascination with their fairy princess dress-up outfits and penchant for bringing their little chairs into the kitchen while I cook and clean: 

So now I guess I better keep up this anti-procrastination streak and actually start stuffing Christmas card envelopes.  Too bad the girls can’t help me with that!