Project of the week! What I Love about my place at Christmas!

Karla over at Karla's Cottage is having a party, I always love a party, so I thought I would go and bring you guys with me!

Here are some of the things I love about my house during the holidays.

My tree. . .with toys for the Toys for Tots program from my wine club.
The tree is actually my sisters tree, and it is artificial. They get a real one now, which is what I have always done in the past, but I did this for ease this year. I am not sure which I like better, but this is pretty easy. I may just pick myself up an artificial one at the after Christmas sales.

It was fun to pull stuff out of my bins that the boy and I had picked up over the past year. This little tin with the ice skaters we found on a trip to Red Wing back in March. Love the way the blues go together.
I had fun decorating the mantle this year. I even got new stockings for the boy and I. Mine is the off white fisherman sweater stocking. Looking forward to filling that gold one! (see the missing tassel, my mom asked what happened to it, she notices everything, I do too, but I am not sure what happened to it!).
My mom gave me this little song bird for Christmas one year. It was funny, both my mom and my sister pointed it out asking where I had gotten it from.
This little girl with Santa in pink, making a snowman, was something that my mom and I picked up together at an estate sale right before Christmas last year. I just love it, I think it is my favorite.
I have gotten a couple of snowbabies from Dept. 56 as gifts over the past couple of years, and I don't collect them or anything, but I think they look cute sitting there on this mirror. To me they just look like they are up to trouble. I don't even put them all out every year, I just rotate them.
The church there in the corner is another estate sale find. It is really a cute piece that it looks like someone made, and it has a music box and plays "I am Dreaming of a White Christmas. . . "
I love the sweet little squirrel and deer sitting outside of the church, I also love th fact that it lights up.
I have picked up some great vintage Christmas linens in the past year, so it was fun to display them on my different tables.
I was excited to put out my Christmas pillows on my new love seat and they actually match much better than on the leather.
I like a simple decorating, but still enough to keep it festive. I also love candles and when they are burning they just seem to make the room so much cozier.
I have quite a few Christmas books, and I love to page through them this time of year. They always give me good ideas and inspire me with ideas for gifts, food, entertaining and decorating.
One of my favorites is Essentially Lilly Holidays. Any of my preppy friend NOT have this book?
My table stays set all the time, but I especially enjoy setting it during the holidays. I have one more rotation of place settings to get through for the holidays, not sure if we will be hosting anyone, but the boy and I enjoy it!
I had fun with a couple of new things this year and got this idea from a Kraft Foods magazine to fill my cylinders with ornaments and decorations. My mom made the skate for me, she made some cute ones this year with fur trim, I may have to grab one of those the next time I am over there. They really turn out cute and I have no idea what my decorating scheme will look like next year so I am thinking I should have a silver one as well. I love those Santa Bears. I was never one to collect them, but these two I love. The way that they are dressed, the little cubs with them, and the bling on the girl bears hand was too cute.
Hope you enjoyed my little holiday home tour, I will leave you with a last look at the tree with presents all ready for the boy and some close ups of the tree. I love my new little black shoe ornament this year from a friend, so fitting. . .Hope you are all enjoying this holiday season, happy holidays! We are off to the Holidazzle parade tonight and dinner with friends, it is actually 32 here at the moment, I won't have to bundle up like a mummy! Only Minnesota would have an outdoor parade during the freezing cold days in December!