This year I'm decorating my place for Christmas more than I have the past few years. Part of the reason is that I'm staying here rather than spending Christmas with my family out of state. And part of the reason is that I want a complete break from school, at least for a little while. So I cleared off the mantel of my non-existent fireplace and covered it with a red, crocheted runner my grandmother gave me. I also assembled my Swedish angels and candles chime thing, which is on the mantel with a Russian icon of the Mother and Child, a small wreath made of pinecones, acorns, and other brown tree things, a card my mother stamped, and a wavy, green-glass vase filled with water and rocks picked up on a winter Washington state beach in which I'm forcing three narcissus bulbs. The bulbs already have six- to nine-inch shoots in less than two weeks. It's fun seeing the roots grow downwards as the green shoots grow upwards. Laura Petix's Nov. 25th post inspired me to try grow paperwhites in rocks and water, which I've never tried before.

Next to the candelabra with five red candles in the fireplace place, I put a 20-inch potted Italian Stone pine tree (pinus pinea). I have one string of white lights on it--it is beautiful! I will try to keep it alive so I can use it for other Christmases. On my computer monitor shelf is a small ceramic tree with multi-colored lights, and I put multi-colored lights on the ficus tree on my porch.