Christmas: Inside Out.

First of all, it is Friday before the holidays so many of you may not be around again until after, so let me take this moment to wish you all a very Merry Christmas. Peace on Earth. Goodwill towards all men. And now, Photo Assignment Nanaimo : Christmas, Inside and Out. I have lots of photos so I will try to rein in my wordiness. It will be my gift to you.
Inside Christmas...it's really just my tree. We don't have a lot of decorations and all our "gifts" arrive on Boxing day, when we open the door to friends for turkey and trimmings and wine and desserts and... Well, you get the idea. If you are in the area, honestly, please stop by. Honest. You'll be welcome.

My ornaments are mostly souvenirs from travels, my travels and those of my friends. When someone wants to bring me something from somewhere they are going, I ask for a keychain. Then when I put them up, I can have a special thought for them each year. Or more than one thought, if they travel a lot....or buy lots of keychains!!! It's like a guaranteed Auld Lang Syne...and a very encompassing thing to behold, both geographically and spiritually.

This one is from New Zealand but reminds me of when the Brady Bunch went to Hawaii.

These are real ornaments. My good friend bought them for me the year I decided to participate in life again. Kind of fitting, eh?

I love this dragonfly...and the Eiffel Tower from a friend who visited there.

One of my dearest friends made this dreamcatcher for me while I was in Colorado. I miss her like mad and though we have drifted a bit in the past few years, I still consider her one of my bestest. I like seeing this up. Auld Lang Syne, see?

Navajo Ghost Beads.

This little Snoopy with the mailbox arrived this year from Biddie...in my mailbox. Cool, eh? The other little disobediant Snoopy with the hockey stick is an ornament I got the first year Michael(my Canadian hockey player) and I were together. Did I mention that my tree leans to the left?

Actually, I think the whole house leans to the left. The teddy bear there, Michael's mom made me from an old thrift store coat. A bobblehead Christmas Beagle...cuz what's Christmas without a beagle at your Charlie Brown Christmas Tree? Did I mention that we got this tree from Rain's kids' scout troop?

Christmas outside...the mall parking lot. Miserable.

Christmas Tree Jail.

Sometimes the only colour you can find in a west coast winter(besides grey) is the decorations.

This is Christmas both Inside and Out. The truck parade is lining up outside my window. Woot woot.

Yup. The Christmas TRUCK Parade.

MMMMM....gingerbread latte, anyone?

Eem-er was intrigued by one entry in particular.....

this one....

and that's it. Gotta go walk the dog, make an second appearance at Hick Chick's Christmas Party, run a couple of errands and get an early dinner started so I can send Michael and the rest of the boys out to see the Clippers play Victoria tonight(an early present for us gals!).