Christmas Decorating

So, even though we never posted about it, we DID get the Christmas tree up after Thanksgiving, as usual.  We were really curious how Claire would handle the tree (and really hopeful she wouldn't pull the tree over or eat the ornaments).  So during nap time we got everything up and the next day we were ready for the ornaments. 

 

My ornament philosophy is gaudy.  I get ornaments to represent special things--births, deaths, events, hobbies, etc.  I love Grinch ornaments (I have a soft spot for the guy since I read that book so many gosh darn times over the past two years).  I also like Winnie the Pooh ones (especially the baby ornaments--luckily I have TWO of them... because I totally got Wally one for the year he was born).  Then I have a whole slew of random pug ornaments which Wally is quite proud of.  We also have the real Wally (from the movie Wall-E) and Gizmo this year for Mogwai, since Gizmo is a Mogwai... get it?

Claire loves the ornaments.  She likes for me to carry her around the tree and show her everything.  She's used this opportunity to learn a lot of words--puppy, pretty, tree, and of course, NO and DON'T TOUCH, although she doesn't heed those as well as we'd like.  She probably laughed twenty separate times at a few of them, including the Wally pug in a tea cup which gets her every time.

I love this ornament.  It's so old and kind of ugly, but it's been on my Christmas tree since I was but a baby myself. 

My initial strategy with ornaments was to put all the ones with hooks and all the ones that break easily up high, but to put some sturdy ones on bottom to even out the look.  Unfortunately as the season wore on, many of those ornaments also found themselves perched higher and higher, until now our tree looks a little naked at the bottom.  Claire daily removes what she can and carries them around, then tries to get them back on the tree with little success.

She even put her socks on the tree one night.  She's gotten very handy putting up her own toys (and Wally's toys in his toy box--and my shoes in his toy box, and my cell phone, and her sippy cup).  So I guess putting the socks on the tree shows she's also learning how to decorate.  Good.  Next year I'll let her have at it.

Every day though Claire tells us that the tree is pretty.  She can even say it together, "pretty tree" which is pretty impressive for a 13 month old. 

Just look at that face!!  I love how excited she is about the tree and our decorations.  Makes me so happy to be a Mommy and give her these experiences!

Claire has even perfected the "share" technique, where we can put out our hands and she'll give us stuff.  She does the same thing back, but sometimes we don't always hand whatever we wanted to "share" back over... like the ornaments.  She's also learned how to say "thank you" when we give her something (or when she gives something to us, since we say thank you then... she's a little confused, but we're trying.  She can also sign "please" and sort of say it, so that's nice)

Don't mind if I do...

Oh here you go... I'll share... THANK YOU!