mantle envy

I have a case of mantle envy.  I've had it for as long as I can remember.  Whenever and wherever Travis and I finally plant our roots and decide buy a house (affording it is the main issue), a fireplace with a mantle is up there on my list of must-haves.  Of course it's not necessary, but I would love it. To me, there is nothing cozier than a toasty, crackling fire on a chilly winter night with a chunky mantle accessorized with candles, pine cones and evergreen boughs, maybe a strand of Christmas lights and jars of glass ornaments...  Not to mention a place to hang our Christmas stockings.  Sure, I'm daydreaming, but I'm in decorating-for-Christmas mode and I always long for a mantle at this time of year.  

In thumbing through some of the blogs that I check in with regularly, this post at "The Lettered Cottage" caught my eye.  Mantels.  Need I say more?

I'm seriously crushing on each of these seasonal mantle displays, and totally looking forward to the mantle reveal of winter 2010.

All of our Christmas totes are stacked up in the entry way and guest room just waiting for me to break that year-long seal and start pulling out the holiday goods.  The tree was put up yesterday, it just needs to get dressed.  As I'm learning, everything takes just a smidge longer with a newborn.  Hopefully we'll be decked out by the end of the week.  We're also still recovering after having house guests for the past three weeks - so this week I'll also be washing linens and re-organizing the guest room, and catching up on other chores and projects that got pushed aside while we enjoyed the company of family.  In between feedings and diaper changes, of course.

Have you started decorating yet?  Christmas IS just around the corner!