It's beginning to look alot like Christmas...

As soon as the tree was up a present snuck under

and laid claim to his spot for the season!

The tree is up....I think this is the first time in my married life that the tree was up before the middle of December. Of course it is a fake tree so that has something to do with it. Yeah, I came home last year with a fake tree the day after Thanksgiving, thought Ed was going to make me go in for a psychological exam! Kmart was on Angela's shopping list so while she was trying to convince herself that getting a fake tree was a good idea she managed to convince me, a die-hard when it comes to a real tree!

Even if the tree is up it just doesn't feel like Christmas until I have the nativity out. I made this nativity the year my oldest son was born, 1979. Although it doesn't show it, the pieces are quite large. The standing figures are 8" and 9" the standing camels are just over 10". I used a Mother of Pearl paint on them.

One of my favorite holiday things to do is to get up in the middle of the night, turn on only the tree lights, put a few Christmas worship CD's in and watch as the light glistens on the nativity...peaceful, calm, thought provoking.

May this season be filled with moments of healthy reflection and joyous anticipation for each of us.