'Tis The Season ...

Last weekend, we set up our Christmas trees and decorated them.  Steve was leaving for Mississippi on Monday, and I wanted to be sure that he was able to partake in the annual festivities before leaving the state.  The girls had a great time helping him put all of the branches in place and then stringing the lights.  Then, they helped me with the ornaments, placing the not-as-fragile ones within their reach.

A major MUST: Making sure the lights work before taking the time to string them on the tree.

Daddy with his little elves:

Every year, we set up TWO trees; a larger one in the living room and a smaller one in the family room, adjacent to the kitchen.  The one in the living room is filled with all kinds of ornaments that we have collected over the years (childhood ornaments, ornaments from our travels and keepsake ornaments for each one of the girls).  The other tree is filled with my cooking ornaments and decorated in red (accented with gold) to match the decor of the near-by kitchen.

Hanging some candy canes:

Taking the time to pick the perfect location for her candy cane:

Daddy had to assist so that some of the candy canes could be distributed on the higher branches:

Samantha's special job every year is to help put the angel on the top of the tree.  Here she is, cradling the angel, so pleased to be able to assist with her yet another year:

Mission accomplished:

Plugging in the angel so that she can shine her light from above:

Sophia, hanging her special birthstone angel:

The helpers, excited to be starting the Christmas season:

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The next day, I rounded the corner and found this ... The girls had pulled up a chair and were sitting, mesmorized by the glowing tree with all of its ornaments:

(The tree skirt was still packed away in another box, waiting to be discovered.  I soon found it, shortly after this picture was taken.  Christmas decorating in this house is a big task and often takes a couple of days ... but I love it).