It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

I have been hard at it in the last few days, hanging lights and assembling our Christmas tree in the hours after I get home from work. I am really, really proud of the lights. I am terrified of heights so this is even more of an accomplishment - with no ladder involved - all hanging from the roof! They're simple, I know, but I plan on adding some color in a week or so. At any rate they look clean and classic - and I like them, so there!

(funky light photo)

We also have a tree. Because Tanna can sometimes be irritated by tree pollens, we decided to go plastic. A few years ago, we bought this tree for like $20, what a deal! The photo doesn't do it justice, it's really tall and actually quite pretty, it just needs decorating.


Speaking of decorating, Tanna wanted to replace our standard door wreath with a more festive version. She went to Wal-Mart and got a few bits and pieces and put this together. I think it looks fantastic - and it was very inexpensive to put together. Wreaths like these were selling for $40, but I think Tanna put this one together for $8. What do you think?


In case you didn't know, or haven't guessed by now, I can be terribly cheap. Not scrooge cheap, but pretty close. We don't like to spend money when we don't have to, so we'll opt to make things if it will save us a buck. This is a far cry from younger John, who must have thought money was made of hot lava and would burn you if you held on to it too long. I guess I had to grow up sometime.