Her own twist on tradition

Traditionally speaking, decking the halls has always been my bag, try as I might to get the family in the spirit. Spence doesn't mind bringing the decorations down from the attic, but that's pretty much where his involvement ends. I always worried that if I got hit by a bus, no Christmas tree would ever grace our living room again (and no bed sheets would ever be changed again, but that's another story). Not a criticism, just an observation of a man's priorities. Why drag out a bunch of clutter only to have to box it up again in a couple of weeks? is his mindset. It's a perspective I shared with him until we had kids.

I knew that one day the magic of the season would light up my kids' eyes and those traditions would be theirs to carry on. That day was yesterday. Perhaps fueled by Fancy Nancy's enthusiasm for the splendiferous season, Princess Caroline made decorating the tree her mission.



When she ran out of official ornaments, most of them heirlooms from my childhood (that's fancy for things that are old and valuable), she improvised (that's fancy for using whatever's around to make something), adding things like a hair clip, a board book, a feather boa, her dress-up bead necklaces, random ribbons, plastic veggies from her kitchen, pom poms, a harmonica, and a Christmas card she made.

Yep, that's a shoe.




She topped it with her princess crown, which, in my opinion, solidified her ownership of all future hall-decking responsibilities because she never, ever takes off that crown unless she's in the bath or in bed.

She was most proud of her tree, guarding it fiercely from Dawit who made sport out of snagging ornaments off the branches and waving them in her face. Just a little revenge for the torture she regularly subjects him to.