christmas decorations

Christmas in July and Why it was a Must This Year

ashley glass blog

2020. The year that will never end, right?? From a global pandemic, and systemic racial oppression, a tanking economy, fear and uncertainty, and everything in-between...this has been a tough year for everyone. (Oh yeah, and flippin Murder Hornets? They were a thing too.) We left our classrooms in March not knowing what in the world would be next, and come August, we will return to school once again…online. The kids miss their friends, their teachers, socializing, and let’s face it, we honestly miss the normal work routine as well and being able to mingle with our co-workers. There has been tension, stress, a lot of unknowns, and a LOT of sadness and negativity flooding social media.

We decided it was time for something happy.
We decided that Christmas in July was a must this year.
…so we did it!
Once the kids went to sleep on July 23rd Asa got out some of our Christmas decorations and we (he..) got to work.

We set our alarms on the 24th and woke before the kids did. Reese is usually the first to wake right at 8am and she was right on time ‘Christmas Eve’ morning. As we drank our coffee and beamed up at her, she was SO confused. As soon as she came around the corner and actually saw the Christmas trees with presents underneath, she sprinted to Pierson’s room and excitedly woke him up. Their reactions were priceless and the joy in our home felt like a warm blanket. They looked at the presents (they each got a total of seven) and then we sat on the couch to watch Christmas movies (starting with Curious George’s Christmas that they have loved since they were toddlers.) Our plans were to spend the next two days together as a family (not that we haven’t had a ton of just family time), but to be more intentional with the things we did; baking cookies, cooking, coloring, decorating, creating, movies together, and big holiday like meals. We had Asa’s mama over as she typically joins us Christmas Eve, and after dinner Asa read the Birth of Jesus to all of us and then we watched a Christmas Story. We baked Gingerbread cookies with a Lemon Cream Cheese Frosting, and earlier in the day we went to Lotsa Pasta to get fresh ravioli for the next night’s dinner. The home was just the right amount of Christmas decor—and the whole mood of the house just felt so peaceful.

On July 25th we had breakfast and then let the kids open their gifts. Again, they got 7 each, and we wrapped things separately like paint by itself, paintbrushes, canvas’s, and then Reese got a couple of dresses and Pierson got a couple of new pairs of shoes. It wasn’t about the presents or spoiling the kids—this was all to create a happy memory for all of us for what has been such a tough and challenging year.

I diffused our Christmas Spirit oil in ALL our diffusers around the clock the entire two days. When we say it smells like ‘Christmas in a bottle,’ we totally mean it. It’s a little spicy, a tad sweet, and just smells completely heavenly. (Want it for yourself? Leave a comment here and I’ll hook you up!) Overall, we highly recommend participating in Christmas in July yourself. You don’t have to go BIG, you don’t have to set up a ginormous tree, just make it what you want and how you want! We used our porch tree from Treetopia and the pre-lit garland that we had from the same company. I had a lot of people message me and say they wanted to do this but it seemed like so much work; my husband will tell you it probably took him an hour start to finish [he is the speedy decorator, again, he is kin to Buddy the Elf so it’s just in his blood,] and he would also tell you it was completely 1000% worth it. August is around the corner, online school will be happening at LEAST the first six weeks (let’s face it.. probably longer..) and we are just praying we can take it ALL in stride and that everyone can stay healthy and happy.

Christmas with Havertys: Holiday Inspiration for Your Living Room

Ashley Glass Photography | Motherhood Photography | Reece and Pierson

Ashley Glass Photography | Motherhood Photography | Reece and Pierson

"I'll be home for Christmas, you can plan on meeeeee. Please have snow and mistletoe, and presents on the treeeeeee."

I'm writing this before Thanksgiving, so either you're completely on board and singing the rest of that Christmas carol with me, OR you want to punch me. I'm just going to go ahead and assume that you're reading this though because you're a Christmas elf like me. 

I see all these Instagram ladies writing how they're the ones convincing their husbands to let them decorate for Christmas this early and I'm always like, "Huhhhh???!" My husband is LITERALLY Buddy the Elf, and can wrap presents in 2.5 seconds flat without tearing or wrinkling a single shred of the paper. "Six inch ribbon curls, honey!" is the phrase that comes to mind EVERY holiday season when we are sorting and wrapping for the kids. All of that to say, it's never been me who is like, "Hey! Let's put up our Christmas tree two weeks before Thanksgiving and get out ALL our decorations!" HOWEVER...I am so grateful that he wants to, and this year is even more epic than all the other eight Christmas' we've had prior. 

While I can thank my husband for being my motivation and holiday inspiration, I can ALSO thank Havertys Furniture. Y'all...I dreamt of their furniture for SO long, and specifically about someday owning a navy blue sofa, and as most of you now know, those dreams are my now reality! Every day I walk into this space and think, "This is OURS?! WE live here!?!" 

We scored our 9-ft. Christmas tree from Hobby Lobby and it was WAY on clearance. Someone recently asked in a photo if it's gold, and no, it's not; but depending on the lighting in the room and what time of day it is, it definitely gives off a golden vibe. We really strive for minimal yet classy when it comes to decoration and design, and I think the final outcome of this room demonstrates that well! We found poufs from Target [thanks, Chip and Joanna for your ridiculously cute new collection] and the kids are really enjoying sitting by the fireplace on them. We also use them to eat around the coffee table [wish we had discovered them before our charcuterie dinner with friends, but hey! It worked!] 

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I'm not going to lie...as I walked around snapping these photos when I did, it became clear to me that we literally live in a ZOO. I mean SERIOUSLY...I'm sure you've noticed our one million pets in the photos by now?! Thank goodness the dogs KNOW better than to get on my beloved blue couch, but the cats?? Not so much...

Another thing that I love about the color scheme we chose for this room is that all of it is so easily versatile with things like throws and accent pillows. The JOY pillow is from Target, as is the giant Santa Claus in the Havertys arm chair. The light creams and rich navy blue is so easy to add pops of color and fun festive textures to. 

Maybe I should add here that my husband dug out ALL of these Christmas decorations, assembled the tree [using a ladder much of the time], and hung ALL of the gorgeous garland in our home?! I joke about him being Buddy the Elf but the truth is, I really wouldn't have the beautiful home that I do WITHOUT him. [Thanks, baby!! Seriously.] 

We could not be MORE thankful that we have this homey space to spend the majority of our time in. When we moved into this home at the end of July, I never would have fathomed THIS. The home was already beautiful, but being a brand new build and basically a blank slate, I had a difficult time envisioning character and charm, romance and elegance. Here we are, just barely four months later, and it is entirely thanks to Havertys Furniture and their H Designers for helping our dreams soar. 

This Christmas you can be sure to find us right here, all season long. Thank God for our wood burning fireplace [one of our biggest house goals], the comfy couch to snuggle up on, and for our children who create ALL of the sweet, sweet laughter. 

Happy Holidays, to you and yours! My husband wanted me to write "God bless us, EVERYONE!" so there that is. And hey, if you have YOUR Christmas tree up, will you email me a photo? You can email me here: ashleyglassphotography gmail dot com

PS: Here is a photo of the space at night; perhaps a bit grainy but I thought it still looked so beautiful! 

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Gathering with the Glasses during Christmas time