Christmas Home Tour: Downright Edition!

Welcome, welcome! Here for the tour? Well, it takes about fifteen seconds to walk through my apartment, so it'll be a short one. Let me just open that door for you...

Right inside the door, we have the Christmas tree, complete with the floor ornaments that the cats have successfully knocked off the tree.

Putting up the tree is one of my favorite Christmas activities, because so many of the ornaments are old friends that I have grown up with. Here's an ornament given to me by my life-long best bud, Laura. I think she gave this to me when I was in the third or fourth grade.

This one is dated 1987 on the back. I was one year old when my grandparents gave it to me, making this my oldest ornament!

Yes, that is Ursula in my tree, compliments of a sibling. Don't you wish your tree was as evil as mine. :-)

Adam gave me this one when we were dating. We have a strange relationship.

I painted this Santa at a pottery studio a couple years back, when my youngest brother came to visit. Isn't he the most epic Santa ever?

Adam got this one from our alma mater last year. We wryly call it "Our $100,000 ornament." Shudder.

Adam cut this off the stump of our first Christmas tree and then woodburned it. He definitely has a creative and sentimental side! :-)

I finally bought some nuts this year. Now Christmas is official at the Downright Domesticity. And, no, we  haven't gotten around to actually doing Advent this year, but I am happy to at least get the candles up this year.

Adam and I both have our own little Christmas trees. Adam bought mine for me when we were engaged; and when he discovered post-marriage that NO, I was not going to make the big tree silver and blue, we bought one for him. Here is Adam's:

The Nativity set. The stable is hiding somewhere, so this year, they're going open-air.

In the living room, Mendelssohn puts on his Christmas finery. Even though he was Jewish. Did you know he wrote the tune for Hark the Herald Angels Sing?

The nutcracker ornaments from Adam's childhood have a mafia feel about them. Don't watch too much TV, or you'll be sleeping with da fishes, knowhaddi mean?

In the kitchen, my signature brown sugar shortbread is on its way to fattening a few unsuspecting souls.

My sister Annalynne made me an Advent calendar, a la the one from our childhood. Last night, I accidentally knocked it over on the way to bed. I said, "Whatever!" and stuck them back on any which way. The result was a Marc Chagall Christmas scene: 

My tree got relegated to the bathroom this year.

It's music-themed, with all sorts of mice playing little instruments.

Not even the bathroom mirror is safe from the Christmas spirit!

I ran out of decorations by the time I got to the bedroom, so that concludes the Christmas tour! Have a warm and fuzzy Christmas, and don't trip over the little reindeer on the way out!