Stuffed Stockings.

When I was a kid, it wasn't the presents

under the tree I looked for to as much as

the stockings that my mom and dad filled

with little treats and trinkets each year.

This is a tradition for our kids now and

the thing I love to watch on Christmas

morning. It can take the longest time for

each of us to go thru the stocking, to

open each gift and laugh as we go. I hope

our kids will have the same thought, that

"stuffed stockings" are the best thing on

Christmas morning, even as adults now!

~ Chy

Gift for Carys.

Carys had a sweet gift under the tree.

She looks quite surprised to find this.

And after opening it, she's so excited

to find a pair of lace stockings to wear!

~ Chy

Opening Stockings.

My little stocking haul this year! A

Swiss white milk chocolate bar, a white

and brown milk chocolate bar with a tree

design, a Kinder Surprise, a bath bomb,

a chocolate bomb, hand cream, the tiniest

Angel and heart earrings, and Lifesavers. 

Lifesavers in Christmas packs are no longer

available in our region, so my youngest dd

created some for us. Ingenious! We all had

such fun opening these up. Good memories!

~ Chy

Christmas Mimosa.

We start our Christmas mornings late

and with a mimosa. So good and very

refreshing. Next is breakfast and after

many laughs, we move on to the gifts.

How do your Christmas morning work?

~ Chy

My Stocking.

Our Christmas stockings are the first thing we

open. No gifts until after we've had breakfast.

I always love opening my stocking and have just

as much fun filling everyone else's! Sweets, an

orange, white chocolate, tiny gifts and this year,

a gift card in a snowflake tin. So much fun!

~ Chy

Capturing: Day 18.

Our stockings were new last year.
I found them just a few days before
Christmas, on an amazing sale. I
want to add some pretty ribbon to
them. One day, when all my other

projects are done, I'll get this done!

~ Chy

The Stockings ....

.... were hung. And they are. Not on

our beautiful mantel above the fire ....

.... but on our desk in the great room,

where they are not in danger of falling

to the ground once they are full. We

used to hang them on the mantel at

our old house. The fireplace there was

old and a wood burner and we rarely

used it. But here with gas, it can be

on quite often and gets hot, so on to

the desk they go. I'm told St. Nick

will remember where they are hung.

Do you hang stockings?

If so, where do they go?

~ Chy

The Stockings.

Hanging on the little desk under

the big window with the village.

Filled to the brim with little gifts,

chocolates and the pumplest oranges.

~ Chy

Christmas Oranges.

One of my early childhood memories is

being so excited when my dad would

bring home "Christmas oranges" in the

little wooden box, with Japanese words

on the side. They were truly a delicacy,

expensive and only were available, if

you were lucky to get any, the week

before Christmas. We were allowed to

have one each night after dinner and

the rest were saved for our stockings

and Christmas dinner. Now these same

oranges are in the stores in October

and we can eat as many as we wish.

But I still get a thrill opening my

stocking on Christmas morning and

finding a sweet orange in the bottom.

Tiny Stocking.

We decided this year to look for new stockings.

Our old ones were getting pretty ratty. I began

searching as soon as the stores started carrying

Christmas items but had no success. Part of the

issue is how many we needed and that we wanted

something that looked truly vintage or Victorian.

About a week before Christmas, we found a

great sale and couldn't believe our good luck

when the stock was plentiful. Not only did we

end up with enough stockings for each of us, 

we also were able to buy extras for future

spouses/partners/kids. And we found little

tiny stockings for each of our babies who are

with us in heart but reside in Heaven. We

chose 2 colors, our favorites ~ green and

purple. You can see how soft these stockings

are and with the addition of some lace, we

are so happy with the look. The price? Can

 you believe all in, we paid just $60 for 20?

We couldn't either! Start the car!!

Stockings!

One of my favorite parts of Christmas is opening

up our stockings that are hung up the night before.

We couldn't hang them on the fireplace this year as

we couldn't find any stocking hangers that are heavy

with weights so we improvised and used the staircase.

It worked but I really had my heart set on the fireplace.

Hoping we can find some hangers for next year.

We don't want to install anything permanently on

the fireplace because it's made of stone. I'd be

scared of creating a crack. So hangers it must be!

It took a while to get them down but worth the wait

at all the little treasures and yummy chocolate inside.

Do you hang up stockings on Christmas Eve?

If you do, what did you find inside this year?

Last Time!

Back story: I am NOT a fan of the color red. I believe the trigger for me was an accident I witnessed with my dad and brother when I was about 5 or 6 years old. We were driving home from the football field (my dad was a coach) and the rain was horrendous. Right in front of us, two cars smashed. And one was red. My dad got out of our car to help and he left the door opening. All I remember is the rain pouring into our car and the image of a little girl, with blonde hair like mine, laying across the front of the car.  She had gone through the windshield and the blood from her was mixed with the red of the car. I'm sure she didn't survive and the screams from the other kids and the dad will never be erased from my mind. That's the only thing I can connect to my dislike of the color. 

When we moved to our current house, our family grew and we decided to get new stockings. Our old family room faced north and the light was dim, so these sweet, velvety stockings actually looked like a dark burgundy, not a bold red. When I took them out of the Christmas box this year, in our new house, I couldn't believe the difference in color. So we decided that this will be our last year using them as they now clash with our new decorations and truthfully, they are way TOO red for me! My hope is to carve out some time this year to sew some new ones to be custom, just for us. We looked around at store bought stockings but now appealed to us. I now have an idea in my head, just need to find some time to create a design, shop for supplies, then sew them up. The reveal will take place some time next fall. And these red stockings? They'll be donated so another family can enjoy them. I'm sure they'll be well loved.

Do you hang up stockings?

What do they look like?

Capture December: Day Eighteen.

Hi everyone!

Hope you are well and enjoying this holiday season. Tonight, I'm posting a picture of "Stockings" in our home for the Capture December Photo Challenge. The first shot is the three small stockings we bought at the charity shop for our three grandpuppies: Bo, Lola and Anakin. We'll put some treats inside on Christmas Eve for all three for the morning.

A metal stocking a dear friend gifted to me one year.

Do you have stockings on your mantel or tree?