I'm Dreaming of an RV Christmas

For those of you wondering how to pull off a festively decorative Christmas while in an RV, the answer is minimalism. I think. I'm still working it out. Also, possibly paper snowflakes, but I haven't gotten there yet. Probably because we're still plowing through the last two weeks of school...or because I have five children...or because I'm beset by inherent laziness--one of those options.

Littles reading The Grinch to the girls. Sometimes my children really make me look good.

The kids and I had that rat on the mantle for three days before the Man noticed. Incidentally, I bought the rat simply for my lesson on the Black Plague. Because of course.

Twinkle doesn't have an initial ornament because I don't think things through and now I can't find one that matches.

Anyway, when we were up in Tennessee, I grabbed the couple of items I'd set aside last year when we packed up what was left of the house, and I brought those down, things like stockings and our advent calendar and the fisher price manger scene (Twinkle is already driving me nuts with that). Then a friend helped me track down a five dollar strand of lit garland, and let me just say, best $5 ever spent. It makes the RV so cozy. Also, I'm still not positive how we got it for only five dollars, but I'm not looking a gift horse (or the military discount on Black Friday) in its mouth.

We keep adding ornaments as they trickle in.

We don't really have a tree this year, but I have a little squishy cloth tree that my sister brought me from Burkina Faso or Chad (I can't remember which, and she will make fun of me forever for forgetting), and it's getting the job done just fine. Especially since we don't have room for presents anyway.

So cute. Normally this tree has a police walkie-talkie charging next to it, but I moved it for the sake of photographic adorability.

And then--and then--I took the boys shopping for sibling gifts and in the dollar section of Target, I found a little advent wreath that isn't too big for the tiny RV counter. I've been wanting my own advent wreath for twelve years now, and it was just a tiny gift of happiness. I grew up with an advent wreath but my husband grew up with the advent calendar that we've been using our entire marriage. I'm thrilled that now both of our traditions are going to be passed on.

Naturally, I have knocked over and broken one of these candles since this picture was taken. I blame the fact that large bags necessary for many children and many books don't fit well in small kitchens.

And finally, as the pièce de résistance, last year my oldest sister gave me this adorable RV/Christmas tree salt and pepper shaker. They were exactly what our RV needed.

I mean: come on!

All in all, it took me less time to decorate the entire RV than it took me to remember where I had squirreled away the Man's stocking. And because it took so little time, I got to make homemade ornaments with the kids and pinecone garland for the twins' club, which made me feel like a super adorable crafty mom. And I'm not going to spit at that. Nope, not even a little bit. Not even at all.