Christmas Open House, part 2

Christmas decorating is like buying presents used to be for me when my children were very young--I just can't seem to find a stopping place.
With the main level being sufficiently dressed for the holidays, I only needed to put on the snowmen collection in the lower level then I could sit back, relax and eat bon bons. I started collecting snowmen a few years ago when I lived in Texas. It didn't make much sense then while living in a region that rarely saw snow--I just thought they were cute. My friends thought I was a bit "off". Then we moved to Iowa where hand rolled snowmen can be seen adorning yards from Thanksgiving to Easter. One year, after a significant snowfall, my kids built a snowman on the deck that looked into the kitchen/breakfast area. They did it up right--it was about 4 1/2 foot tall and was complete with a face, scarf, and a hat. That thing startled me every time I walked into the kitchen. I was glad to see that Frosty melt away. So here's the snowmen collection (which I must say usually stays up until March because...we live in Iowa):









That's it... I was done.
But then I started thinking about College Boy returning home and I wanted to fix his room up. You know welcome him to a warm, comforting, clean place that didn't look like his 4 dude apartment. So I found this old reindeer collection and that sparked the "Recycled Masculine Lodge Theme" for his room. The tree is from his older brother's dorm days, the ornaments are from early days of marriage, the wicker love seat was rejected by The Princess because I picked it up from a neighbor's driveway (they were giving it away). I recovered one of the pillows with an old piece of Christmas fabric and displayed the reindeer collection on the bed and love seat. The book is one from the kid's collection and was one that gave College Boy one of his childhood nicknames. I'm sure he will be overwhelmed with nostalgia and give me a big hug and a kiss for all the trouble I've gone to in creating this themed room OR he will shove everything out of the way as he dumps his laptop, back pack, and dirty laundry in the room where he once hid out from the world (or just his parents). Maybe you will appreciate it:
"NOW I'm done!", I said to myself as well as announced it to all those around.




Then on THURSDAY College Boy called to say that College girlfriend would be coming home with him ON FRIDAY for the weekend. Well, I couldn't have a guest in the guest room without some kind of Christmas decor. So, I pulled out another Princess reject and decorated this little white tree with gold, silver and multi-colored miniature balls. I KNOW she will appreciate it because she's a girl and notices those little touches and... well, you know, I am College Boy's MOM.





Well friends, now I am done. That completes the tour but I wanted to give you a look at my front porch as you leave. Thanks for stopping by again. Take care and drive safe.




And because this is Iowa, that is not Department 56 snow strategically scattered about. It's real, it's getting deeper by the hour, and it tomorrow it will need to be shoveled.