Christmas Time Is Here

I spent most of today putting up the remaining Christmas decorations. I started with the bears first. When my sisters and I were kids, Mom would dress our teddy bears and a few other stuffed animals in old baby clothes, scarves, and hats. She'd long stopped doing this by the time I moved on my own in 2002 and turned the remaining holiday-only bears and their things to me. I love dressing the bears. I have the perfect place for them, too - under the tree.

After the bears were done, it was time to pull out the display items. I have all kinds of great stuff for holiday displays I've gotten from here, there, and everywhere. The Sailor Soldiers' tiny tree and its balls were presents in college, when we couldn't have any kind of live greenery in the dorms. The gorgeous Winter Dreams Cinderella, Jessica the December Birthstone Doll, the two porcelain teddy bears with the big smiles in the Santa outfits, and the little porcelain bears in winter clothes came from the Friends In Deed Thrift Shop before they shut down last year. The big resin Santa statue, the copper Christmas bell with the candy cane cut-outs, and the American Girl tin (not to mention the tree and wreath) were Christmas presents.

It took me a while to get everything together. I had to find new places for some things, thanks to the re-organizing I did in the early fall. The new TV being much smaller than the old one helped. I put the Ferro Rocher bell, the rope of fake garland greener, and some of Mom's home-made calico Gingerbread people dolls around the TV and DVD player, and it looks very nice. Max and Ruby hold the little basket with the greenery and the "candy cane" and little wooden penguin. (I hope Max doesn't try to eat that candy cane. It's a wooden mini-cut-out!)

I finished with just enough time to have a quick leftovers lunch and hurry off to work. I wish I'd stayed at home. Work was a pain in the rear. There were lots of huge orders, fussy customers, and people who give you six hundred directions on how to bag without lifting a finger to help themselves. Plus, we were down that suspended cashier and short on help.

Thankfully, I was able to get off of work on time and do my own grocery shopping. I mainly had to restock fruit and vegetables for the first time since the Farm Market ended. Picked up apples, pears, broccoli, bananas, and cranberries. I also needed chocolate chips, canned pumpkin, tape (I ran out this morning putting up the snowflakes on the windows), and brown sugar. There was a sale on almonds, so I got some of those, too.

Also got another good schedule next week. Pretty much the same as this week, only I have Monday off instead of Tuesday. Monday was a request - my friend Amanda is visiting that day. I'm looking forward to it. We get together every Christmas and exchange presents and hang out.