Christmas At Home

For the past four years we have celebrated Christmas overseas.  There were two years in Holland and two years in Dubai.  We loved our Christmas celebrations and kept many of our old traditions with us while also creating new ones.  Wherever we were, we always had a wonderful Christmas because we were together.

This year we are back at home in Texas.   Unpacking our Christmas decorations was so much fun.  We had not brought ANY decorations with us overseas, so the ornaments, village, Santas, snowmen, and stockings had all been packed away in storage all this time.   It seemed as if every box we opened brought another round of smiles and laughs.  When we opened Kevin's boxes, there were actually reminder notes of "what to do in 2008!".  Little did we know that we wouldn't see those notes until 2012!  Just too funny.

One of the things we have enjoyed the most about being 'home' is the Christmas lights.  I really don't know if there are more lights this year than there were five years ago and the neighbors have just all decided to do it up big, bigger, and biggest, or if I just plain and simple took the decorations for granted.   In any case, the drive through Friendswood is just wonderful.  I have tried very hard to take pictures to share.  Unfortunately, no matter how hard I try, the pictures just do not do the home decorations justice.  I hope you are still able to look at the pictures, close your eyes, and imagine just how truly beautiful (or weird), they are.

This is how Santa comes to Friendswood!  On a fire truck and giving away treats to kids and dogs alike!

Beautiful house.  Every door and window outlined in lights. 

This house is a little overdone.  Don't quite understand why the reindeer have to stand in the trees!

Biggest Santa I have ever seen!

This house is MASSIVE and has all of their trees outlined in blue lights.  Words can't describe....

We kept looking at this.  Just don't get it!  How does people dancing in front of a board celebrate Chrismas?

This is the Griswolds house.  All to music and WAY overdone.  Could not get a picture of all the stuff!

I love the "light" tree.  My dad did this in our yard when I was little.

The school mascot is the mustang.  The blue mustangs bring Santa into town here! 

Not many nativity scenes in town, but this one would win my vote for best.

True Reindeer games! 

My dog, Shadow, loves this! She stops on her walk and just stares at all the movements.

I found in our "elf" box the Christmas lists the kids had left for Santa.  When they were little, they just had to cut out pictures from ads of their 'wants".  Made it SO easy!

This is tree #1 in my house.  Only nine feet tall this year.  It holds all of our very special ornaments.

This is my international tree.  Only one US ornament, one of the Texas flag.  All the other ornaments were bought on our travels overseas.

Finally put a tree in my room.  Just snowflakes and ornaments to match the colors of the room.

This is the game room tree.  All homemade ornaments and favorite disney and special event ornaments picked out by the kids. 

There are two more big trees in Sarah and Brian's rooms which hold their very special ornaments.  Kevin's room and the guest room only have 4 1/2 foot trees due to space limitations.

Christmas in Texas has been wonderful.  I have loved the crazy hustle and bustle.  I have enjoyed hearing the kids in the mall laugh, cry, and plead "please tell me what I did wrong!".  I enjoyed seeing a man shopping in his one piece footy pajamas yesterday.  I had tears in my eyes when I was finally singing the solo "O Holy Night" at church again.

Being away was wonderful, but being home is pretty incredible too.  I think I did not know how very much I missed it until I had to miss it no more.   Being home takes away nothing from the wonderful memories of our Christmas' abroad. We cherish every one of those moments equally as much as we do our little "to do in 2008" notes.

I wish all of my friends a wonderful, blessed Christmas.  May your new year be filled with everything your heart desires, but especially friends, family, good health and happiness.  

With love...
Carol