Hey y’all,  I’m the last one on the block and that’s a good thing because for the last 48 hours, I have over dosed on Advil to ease the body aches from the Thanksgiving marathon I ran last week and the gazillion trips up and down the attic stairs collecting  Christmas decorations. The excitement of being a part of the Merry and Bright Holiday Home Tour hosted by Shelly from Confetti Style and Kellie from Design Asylum, kept my adrenalin flowing and a little help from Mr. A, (aka Advil) pushed me to the finish line. I am so honored to be a part of this tour with so many fantastic bloggers.

If you are dropping in from Love Your Abode, I’m sure Yuni got your creative juices flowing with her beautiful holiday décor. I hope you are enjoying the tour and have your favorite beverage in hand and a comfy seat because I went a little lot crazy with the pictures. Come on in, browse around and get your Merry and Bright finale fix.

I love decorating for Christmas. Back in the day, I decorated my entire home. Honestly, it was an over kill and it practically put me six feet under. As I matured, I realized I didn’t need to decorate every corner of my home. A simple nativity scene says it’s Christmas time. I have lots of Christmas decorations from years of collecting but I focus on decorating a few rooms instead of the whole house. Welcome to my home for the holidays.

Here is my  front porch area. Most things on my porch; like the poinsettia topiaries and door wreath, I’ve had for years. The topiaries are a DIY project I made with some silk stems and ribbon. This year, I added the poinsettia throws on the chairs. I found them at Walmart for less than $5 bucks each. I repurposed the ladder after I discovered it had some broken steps.

Every year, I place my nativity scene in different areas of the house but I absolutely love it here in the entry. I’ve added a collection of figurines to my nativity and I love how they add to the serene feel of the manger scene. My sissy gave me this rocking chair. I keep it covered with a throw to hide the signs of a long overdue upholstery job. Perhaps I’ll get around to that project one day.

My Christmas tree tried to spoil my decorating. The tree comes in three parts and for some crazy reason, the bottom did not want to go in the stand. We had to shove pieces of cardboard on the sides of the pole to get it to stand straight. Then half the lights didn’t work. I had to sit down and have a glass of wine to calm my nerves. Wine and Advil… Mmmmm am I supposed to mix the two? I added some lights and as the saying goes… Carry On!

My tree is filled with ornaments I’ve collected over the years. You will find my son, Aaron’s handmade ornaments sprinkled all over the tree. Every time I pull them out of the box to decorate the tree, I get emotional. The teddy bears were Aaron’s when he was a toddler. Aaron turned thirty this year.

I kept my mantel simple with some garland and poinsettias.

Thank you for dropping in. I hope you enjoyed part- 1 of the Merry and Bright Holiday Home Tour. Please visit the links below for the eight fabulous bloggers who are participating in the tour.

Be sure to check out Part 2 and Part 3 for the full Merry and Bright Tour Here and Here.

We will be sharing more inspiration over the next couple of weeks so be sure to subscribe to each bloggers link and you won’t miss the next Merry and Bright Holiday Home Tour. 
Shelly from Confetti Style
Kellie from Design Asylum Blog
Elaine from OMG Lifestyle Blog
Debbie from Refresh Restyle
Tamyra from Positively Southern
Kate from Chic On A Shoestring Decorating
Amy from Amy Howard Social
Yuni from Love Your Abode