It's beginning to look a lot like Christmas!

With Thanksgiving officially over, it was time to put up the Christmas decorations! In fact, I totally took down the Thanksgiving decorations after our hot cocoa bar. Most people went downstairs to watch a football game, but I decided to skim through the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade (a tradition from my childhood) while taking down all the pumpkins, fall leaves, and Thanksgiving decor. Friday we were ready to break out the red, green, sparkly, commercialized and spiritual decor. It's the most magical month for me. I really enjoy settling down at night to watch a Christmas movie (mostly from Hallmark) by the lights of the Christmas tree.

Once I had most of the house decorated, Jeff helped us set up the tree. This is by far our favorite part of decorating. As we were starting to pull out the ornaments, there was a knock at the door. Jingle, our scout elf from the North Pole, arrived with the kids' ornaments for the year! (I enjoy having Jingle join us for fun activities throughout the month.) Each year, the kids get an ornament that pays homage to a major event that happened that year. This year, Jonas received an ornament of a kid with a broken arm; Danny got an Eagle Scout ornament; Dallin received one of a boy with a cap and gown for his high school graduation (next year he'll get a mission one); Amber received a wedding one; Jacob got one for his first elk hunt; Laurin received a graduation one for her RN; and Casey, got one to commemorate their engagement. After Jonas and Danny unwrapped theirs (and Dallin's...the older kids weren't there), we started to unpack all the others. It's fun to reminisce about the trips we've taken or the activities we've done over the years. There are so many fun memories on that tree. It reminds me of how blessed we are to have experienced all these magical moments together. The Christmas magic is finally upon us! It's truly the Most Wonderful Time of the Year!