tree's up
well-lit
We put up our Christmas tree Wednesday, and Harvey and I decorated it yesterday afternoon. Maybe that'll motivate me to get going on making some presents. This was the first year that Harvey was actually helpful in putting up ornaments—rather than, you know, hooking himself like a fish on the wire hooks. He hung some 20 or so, and was a delightful cheery presence all through the process, commenting happily at each new bauble. "Oh, it's a Santa head! No body, just the head."
Zion was asleep through the process, thank goodness. At this point he's somewhat crazier than Harvey was at the same age, so for the first time I have some concerns for the safety of the tree and its decorations. It's already fallen once, actually, though that's my fault: I didn't notice that a kink in the trunk put the center of mass out over the edge of the stand, despite the setup appearing straight when viewed from a distance. Weren't we all surprised! Coming down it didn't hit Harvey very much.
Leah and I already spent an evening enjoying the tree's calming beauty; we even spent more than fifteen minutes sitting on the couch together gazing at it (and she at her computer and I at my book). It would have been even longer if I didn't have to jump up to photograph the moment for this blog post. Still, that's the most time we've spent together at a stretch since the beginning of December, so I'll take it! Rascal was there too, but he never has any trouble relaxing after dark.
basking in the glow
Leah wanted to get the tree up so she could start putting presents under it. She has some quantity accumulated already, I understand. As I intimated above, I'm still trying to get started on the process. No problem, still eleven days left!