Christmas all around the house

Hi Blogger Friends!  Today I am so excited to share my whole house with you now that it's all decked out for Christmas.  Tis the season, and in the spirit of giving and sharing I've decided to join several linky parties.  Oh what fun it is, to sit back for a moment and enjoy all the pretties that others are sharing of how they decorate to celebrate the most wonderful time of year.  I'll be attending the following parties at; All Thru the House Christmas Tour of Homes, 

The Scoop, 

and Inspire Me Tuesday.  

Come on in sweet friends! It may be nearly 80 degrees outside but inside it's a cozy winter wonderland!

The first thing to welcome you in the foyer of my home is the manger.  I couldn't think of a more welcoming scene to put in my entry way.  The message of the baby Jesus birth coming to save us is one of the greatest most inclusive and unconditional acts of love ever.  I want others to feel that love when they enter my home.

This message is why I like to go all out at Christmas.  This is reason enough for me to pull out every bit of effort I can to celebrate.  It's all about sharing joy and celebration with those I love.

  I know most of you attending these parties understand that because I have already been enjoying some of your beautiful homes.  Wow!  You ladies really know how to do it up right!  I love looking at all your pretties because they inspire me so much.  I probably tune in to blogs more this time of year then any other because there is so much to see and appreciate.

Let's walk over to the dining room now.  I keep a silver, gold and ivory theme in here.  This is the only room I haven't done a full post on yet, but it's coming soon, I promise.  One of the things I'm going to enjoy the most is using our new table with family this year.  I got our table this summer at an estate sale being held just down the road.  I still hope to find additional chairs one day that match, I have 6 would prefer 8.

I kept things fairly simple in here with just a few splashes of frosty faux greenery.  I love the sparkly look of snow on greenery don't you?  

 I have been enjoying seeing so much real greenery among many of your homes this year.  It's so positively beautiful!  I would really love fresh greenery but it's a bit too costly for me this year.  I could have sneaked out in the backyard and cut a few cypress branches but I'm thinking with all the rain and warmer temps we've had this year that would not have been too smart.  I've already heard warnings on our local news about those who have real trees need to be on the look out for ticks this year.  Can you imagine?  Yikes! 

Now let's pop into the kitchen, okay?



It's candyland all the way in here.  Yum! Yum!   This year I added a new slimmer then ever tree so I wouldn't have to eliminate any furniture pieces.  I was so surprised about how many ornaments actually still fit on this tree.




We have a new little one coming this year who is a toddler and I absolutely cannot wait to see his face when he see's this room.  I may just have to let him hold one of the elves too!





I have been enjoying the coffee bar so much after I added a countdown calendar on my chalkboard. I was inspired to make my own after seeing a premade chalkboard countdown at Target.   It's amazing and kinda scary how quickly the days have flown by since I started counting down.

Before we walk into the den let's poke our heads in the half bath.  I know it's kinda weird, but I wanted you to see how I finally found the perfect spot for my pink mercury glass Christmas trees.  Since this bathroom has a rose garden type theme I was so thrilled when I realized how cute they would look in here.  Love when that happens!

Okay now you can go on into the den!






































One of the best tips of inspiration I have gotten from blogs was a tutorial that I saw last year.  It was on how to do multi layered ribbons for the Christmas tree. I did it last year and let me tell you this was so easy and so fun! It's also probably the main reason why I just knew I had to do new ribbons this year.

I still kept the den in a very rustic and woodsy feel but with a bit of a different spin.   It's now a more updated look with a modern mix of plaid and cheetah.






































Crazy I know, but y'all I just love it!  For me it's so fresh and colorful!  There were several changes I made in this room because I was inspired by others.    One more idea I used was when I was inspired to add more vintage looking Christmas balls after seeing a beautiful kitchen picture on pinterest that used them all around the room.  So likewise, I decided to spread some around too!

The last stop on the tour today will be on my screened porch.  I hope you like Mermaids!



It's a Nautical wonderland out here!  We love this little porch and are sure to be enjoying it quite a bit this Christmas.  It's so unusually warm this year but what a blessing!



I say it's a blessing because I've been able to get caught up on the cleaning and repainting and maintenance that I would otherwise have not been able to do this time of year.



So as we sit outside this Christmas and enjoy these warmer temps we will also be able to sit and remember summer vacations past while looking at the ornaments on my Nautical tree.  I can hardly wait until everyone gets here and we can start to reminiscence!



Well that' wraps it up friends!  I didn't share any of our outdoor lights but they out there.  LOL!  IF I can I will try to do a seperate post on those as well.

Thank you all so very much for visiting today!  I really hope you enjoyed the tour.  If you enjoyed this tiny bit of inspiration I've shared and want more please be sure and pop by any of the following for more beautiful sights from all over!
All Thru the House Christmas Tour 
The Scoop
Inspire Me Tuesday

Wishing all of you a very Merry Christmas this year!
Hugs,
Mary