Christmas Decor for Kids

We finished decorating the house last night, just in time because today the mailman brought the very first gift for us to put under the tree & it was for me!

I signed up for this year’s gift exchange with Craftaholics Anonymous. I love the idea of exchanging homemade gifts with a complete stranger because it reinforces the reason we exchange gifts in the first place.

My partner was Jen from Just Jen.

She made me this adorable Christmas tree. Isn’t it sweet? I love that it’s not too Christmas-y. It could even make an appearance in other parts of the year. Like maybe for Valentine’s Day. My aunts both have country-themed decor and they would leave an adorable tree like this out all year, I’m quite sure.

Thanks, Jen!!

It fits right in with my theme this year, Touchable Trees. 🙂

With two toddlers in the house, we only decorated the top half of our main Christmas tree in order to prevent as many ornament casualties as possible. It looks a little weird, but at least people looking in from outside can’t tell that only the top half is done

and for the first time, we actually put up more than one tree. We dug out my tiny Dollar General tree from my college days and I made a “touch table” for the kids. They are allowed to touch anything I put on this table & I’ll switch out the stuff periodically in hopes that it will hold their interest enough to keep them away from the other one.

For the kids’ tree, we use fabric or plastic ornaments and let them decorate themselves. If your children are very small, you might want to avoid garland or ribbon because it could be a choking hazard.  No glass to break or sharp edges makes this tree safer than most other Christmas trees and curious little hands can do all the exploring their heart’s desire. 

We also watched the Polar Express on tv last night with Nicholas after Abby was asleep & we read The Elf on the Shelf book and put out the elf.

Tonight I plan to wrap presents & maybe make some cookies. You gotta love getting your Christmas on!

And because it’s important to remember the serious reason why we are doing all this decorating & gift exchanging I thought I’d share one of our new favorite Christmas traditions: Our friends Bryce & Emily performed this song at our church’s Christmas Eve service last year while the video played on a large screen & there wasn’t a dry eye in the house.

Merry Christmas!! 🙂