Fourteen through seventeen.

Nine thru thirteen.

Seven and Eight.

Here's my little snowman tart warmer I picked up at JoAnn's on Black Friday. I've always been a candle girl, and am new to the tart warmer, but I think I'm hooked.

And I took a close-up of our little tabletop tree. I got red tartan plaid bows at JoAnn's in the same Black Friday sale, so I decided to do the tree in red and gold. This required picking up some gold ornaments, gold snowflakes, red berry clusters and what not. The tree has red and white lights. And a big dark red bow on top. I don't love it like I did last year's, but it's quite pretty.

Five and six.

I'm getting behind in my journal because I'm having some snafus with my photo developing place. (Wal-Mart, of which I shall never darken the door again.) Here's the Christmas card we are sending to family and friends this year. (I had to chop it up to fit it on the page.)

And here's yesterday's entry, just a couple lines on the horrible weather and the coziness of having a tidy, dry, warm home. I put some tiny doilies on it to connote coziness!

Planning.

I've never put a December calendar in my JYC album before; this seemed like a good year to do that, as it will be a busy month. I'll add things as they pop up, too.

Waiting and receiving.

For December 2, the theme is generally Advent-related, although as always, class participants are able to stretch the idea as far and wide as they choose. I generally do stick to Advent, since that has been an important part of many Christmases for me, and I decided to use the cover of my Advent devotional for this year. It's a really good one so far.

December 3 is about a remembered special gift. Gifts are one of my love languages, and I often do remember things I've given and things I've received, but Christmas gifts are a little hazy in my memory. Plus, I've written about most of the stand-out gifts in past journals. But yesterday, the memory of a certain coveted pleated blue tartan plaid skirt came into my mind! I've lost contact with the friend who gave it to me, but I hope she remembers it fondly, too, and the times we wore our matching skirts to church.

Journal Your Christmas 2016.

This will be my tenth mini Christmas album, done under the auspices of scrapbooker Shimelle Laine's Journal Your Christmas class. Every year's album is different, but every year's process is the same: start off with a bang on December 1, and then abandon it somewhere around December 21 (usually when we go home to Ohio for the holiday.) Then when we come back, I am completely over Christmas and end up grudgingly finishing up the last pages sometime the following December.

This year has proven to be no different, so far...I am trying to finish the December 21-25 pages from 2013 and 2015. (I didn't do a 2014 album, or I am sure I'd be patching up that one, too.)

We're heading for Ohio again this year on December 22. I'm going to try to do better this year and get the dang book done after Christmas!

December 1st's entry is focused on a "manifesto"--I don't go quite that militant in my approach. This year I want my focus to be hope. I struggle with hopelessness quite a lot in my life, and the past several weeks (post-election) have been extra-hard. I know that many of the people around me are struggling, too. Last year I wanted to be a blessing to others during the Christmas season, and this year I want to "be joyful in hope" and spread some of that around as best I can.