As I Look At The Boxes Of Holiday Decor In Our Basement, I Wonder Sometimes What I Must Have Been Thinking When I Used Some Of The Things We Have. It's Amazing Anything Survived My 'Paint It All Gold' Phase. One Entire Box Looks Like A Pharaoh's Tomb.

As we head into the week before Thanksgiving, I can feel the engines of holiday preparedness revving in the distance.  This time of year is a real balancing act.  I feel like I'm constantly walking the line between holiday reveler and drill sergeant.  This is the last week the kids have off before Christmas and they need to accomplish a few things before they go back - like a massive room cleaning, that if ignored could derail the planned room painting we have on the coming week's agenda - because why not paint two bedrooms mere days before Thanksgiving?  I would also consider it an early Christmas gift if they were able to learn how to use a hamper, a trash can, and to exit the shower without tearing down the shower curtain.  I hope Santa is listening.

There is also outdoor lighting and holiday decor to install.  It's a challenge to not rush Thanksgiving out the door before it's had its day in the sun, but the clock is ticking, people.  I'm not going to wait until after Thanksgiving to get started - it just is too much to do all at once.  Christmas will slowly leak into our home all next week, so by the time we return from our dinner on Thursday, all that will be left is the tree purchase and trimming.

I love the holidays and I really like our house to feel festive, but I think I'll take a different approach this year.  I don't want December 26th to come accompanied by the claustrophobic feeling I've had in years past - where I've lived with so many faux greens and ribbons and ornaments for the weeks leading up to Christmas that by the time it gets here I can barely wait until the last guest leaves on Christmas night before I start dismantling everything.  I love the way those fully decorated houses look, but it kinda weighs me down when my own home is that way.  And it seems like so much work to do just to have to remove it all in a month or so.

I think this year I'm going to add a touch of holiday here and there, but mostly keep things to a simple Winter theme.  That way our seasonal decor won't get on my nerves so much and I can keep most of it up until spring comes.  I'll take Coco Chanel's advice on accessorizing -  "When a lady leaves the house, she should look in the mirror and remove one accessory"- and overlay that onto our holiday home decor.   I'll decorate, take a look, and then remove something.  The tree is non-negotiable though.

I'm wearing this today.

I need to get my out-of-home activities done early today because these pants seem to grow on me while the day progresses and by late afternoon I look like M.C. Hammer.

gratitude:  our new coffee table, lighting, Thanksgiving break, pretty paint colors

thanks and love.