12.14.2014

Holiday Home Tour 2014

Welcome to my holiday home tour! Uh, well, half of it anyway. I only decorated the downstairs portion of our house, and not every single room of the downstairs at that. Let's just say that going from having one-and-a-half year old quadruplets to two-and-a-half-year-old quadruplets means mommy and daddy are waaaaaay more tired this year. We've decided not to host a Christmas party—something we've done religiously nearly every year since we got married—and we haven't been participating in any of the holiday events around our neighborhood, church or city in general because a) it's really hard to get to anything during the week and b) like I said, we're exhausted! So I've been struggling to get into the Christmas spirit a bit this season and would probably have been totally fine if we'd only put up the tree. But I got randomly motivated a couple days ago and my parents were watching the quads at their house for the day, so decor got decked. Done and done.


So anyway, here's some photos of the holiday-outfitted lower level. And please note I tidied up a few spaces to snap these photos while the quads ate lunch but didn't exactly clean. Which means there's lots of surface mess, but I won't draw any more attention to it than that! Let's not forget the eight little hands I've got roaming around the house, too. They help move ornaments around on the tree, leave cookie crumb trails through the dining room and squish their little fingerprints onto the piano. It might mean I never have a clean house, but it means I've got four active, healthy two year olds and I'll take that any day. :)


C'mon in! 

I decided to accentuate our usual lighted garland around the front door with big swags of red mesh, which was super easy to wind into the garland. Finished it off with a couple decorative picks from Hobby Lobby I purchased several years ago. 



The entry way now features nine white frames, some of which are waiting to be filled with new photos. I got them on the cheap for $2 each at Ikea, and plan to add some thick matting to several of them to make them look a little nicer quality. (This is a look I'm trying out, but might not stick with. I need to add a much larger rug to the entry area and will have some new decor to put out on the table in the spring.)

The table, a long ago Craiglist purchase, holds a table runner and an assortment of Christmas trees. This was done for the quads, as they love looking at all the decorations this year and are especially fond of pretty trees.



A sprig of mistletoe hangs from the doorway that bridges the foyer and living room, and more red mesh snakes its way up the garland on the stair banister. I used more picks from Hobby Lobby to add a finishing touch, and hung the stockings from the garland as I did last year. I love how it looks! The stockings were a great deal at Hobby Lobby and I simply ironed on letters for the monograms.





It's a pretty view from the stairs!


The living room is light and bright, with the tree as a focal point. We haven't mounted our TV to the wall yet so I hung our newest family portrait above it. A $3 basket from Target serves as a centerpiece on the coffee table, filled with scented pinecones. 






Each year, I order a new family photo ornament from Snapfish that's printed on tin and I add the year to the image. It's a great keepsake that can't be broken! I also gift the husband a new ornament each year, which are usually hunting-themed, and the "hunting" license plate was his for this year.


We moved the piano to the back wall of the living room so that the tree could go in its place, so it's a bit crowded next to my bookcase back there. But I decorated it all anyway with a few knick knacks I found in the bottom of one of my Christmas bins—including a random string of red lights!





The adjoining dining room was kept simple—a small garland and some reindeer on the hutch, a red poinsettia cut-out runner, votives and jingle bell tree on the table, and a wreath on the door.




The kitchen was kept simple as well. A garland over the sink, a wreath on the window in the breakfast area above the quad table, a candle holder on the island and holiday cards displayed from ribbon on the cabinet doors. I love seeing those every day. :)



I used some fun colors in the play room and the kids adore the Frozen-inspired hues. My sister strung the plastic ornaments (from Wal-Mart) onto ribbon for me so I could hang the garland on the mantel. Love it!


All that's left are a couple trees in the guest bathroom, and that's it!

Have you finished decorating for the holidays? Posting a tour? Leave a link in the comments section, I'd love to see it!

Merry Christmas!
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4 comments:

  1. I love it!! looks like a cozy and warm housee!!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Everything looks beautiful! I'm sure the little ones love it. They are growing so much and I love hearing their voices on your Mom's blog. :) There's nothing like seeing Christmas through their eyes ~

    xo
    Pat

    ReplyDelete
  3. Everything looked beautiful. Love the added mesh around the door garland.

    ReplyDelete

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