Holiday Heartburn

I'm slowly working on getting a few pictures up on the blog of our holiday decorations and family traditions- Someday when we look back at these we'll have to smile right?  Even though now- it kind of gives me heartburn and a headache.  But I figure if that's all I've got this far into December, I'm doing pretty well.  Shaun starts twitching in November when the stores start playing Christmas music and he goes downhill from there.  :)

This year is the first year since we've had kids that I dared pull out my Grandma Newren's Dicken's Village.  She and my grandpa used to make ceramics and sell them at local craft fairs.  The kiln has been long gone, but she saved a few pieces to pass onto the grandkids.  I was one of a lucky few to inherit a Dicken's Village.  I can remember going to my grandma's house and laying on the floor for HOURS just looking at her village.  I would make up little scenarios in my head about the people in the village... which was really easy.  My grandma and grandpa used to have three Christmas trees in their living room and they had a massive village to go underneath all of them- there was snow and skating ponds and even a little mural my grandpa painted to go on the wall behind the village- it depicted a little local ski hill.  It was awesome and in short- one of my very favorite things about Christmas.

But as it is made of glass and I have three rambunctious little kids... I have been terrified to pull it out.  My oldest begs each year for me to get it out- he's only seen it in boxes... and this year I succumbed.  It's gorgeous and every time I look at it I smile.  But it still gives me heartburn.