The halls are decked for the holidays at the White House, and I got the special treat of touring it Friday! Of course, seeing all the trees and the Christmastime splendor was incredibly fun. And of course I was looking out all the windows hoping to catch a glimpse of the President, Michelle Obama, or even Bo. (No such luck for me.) But I was also impressed with all the work that went into putting the White House into its holiday trimmings -- much of it by volunteers. How many trees? How many hours? How many ornaments? Read on to find out what goes into the White House holiday decorations.

Last week I got the exciting opportunity to tour the White House in all its holiday glory. I'll post more about that tour (including lots of photos!) tomorrow. But we have to give special mention to the "official" White House Christmas tree. This year, the 18-foot Fraser Fir from Jefferson, North Carolina is dedicated the courageous service of our men and women in the military. Here it is in the Blue Room.

You can see the "Joining Forces" banner running across the tree's boughs. Joining Forces is the First Lady and Jill Biden's special initiative to bring more support and opportunities to military families. But you have to look closely to see the sweetest part of this tree.

Christmas stockings are lots of things -- cute, sentimental, necessary -- but stylish usually isn't one of those things. Most of the time, at least. I went on an Internet quest recently to find my daughter a stocking for her very first Christmas, and it turns out -- there actually are a fair amount of non-cheesy, chic, stylish stockings out there. Who knew?

If you're in need of a stocking this year -- or, hey, even if you're not -- here are 6 super stylish Christmas stockings for your super-stylish self. Happy shopping, friends.

Image via Cherished Vintage

Advent calendars are such a fun tradition for the holidays, and they're surprisingly easy to DIY. There are so many pretty examples and tutorials to be found that I thought it would be a treat to put together a few of my favorites (like the gorgeous one above found at The Marion House Book).

Click through to see 4 more below!

Love thy neighbor? NAH.

A woman named Sarah Henderson was pissed off at her neighbors and used her Christmas lights to show it. The Louisiana mama of four children deliberately set up her decorations in the shape of a hand giving the middle finger to "communicate" with her neighbors, with whom she's been having an "ongoing dispute."

Not very holiday-spirit-like, right? And now the police are involved. The 5-0 ordered that Henderson take down the offensive lights, and Henderson came back with a whopper sure to make any non-Aryan's head spin ...

We're nearly approaching what I like to (non-sarcastically) call, "the most wonderful time of the year." You might assume that I'm being snarky when I say this, because I love snark like I love peanut butter, but in this case, I'm dead serious.

I'm unabashedly unashamed of my love for the holidays -- I rock out to my Christmas music all year round, I plan and plan and look forward to the holidays more and more with each year that goes by.

However, that doesn't mean my plans go awry each and every year.

In terms of holiday decorating, the possibilities are legitimately endless. Seriously, when this time of year rolls around, who doesn't want to channel their inner Martha Stewart and throw down some cheer around the house?

Yes, I wish I had the funds to splurge on adorable centerpieces, napkin rings, plates, wreaths, the whole nine yards. The reality of it all, though, is that festive doodads, well, they cost a lot of money. Money that I should be spending on that new mandoline slicer my dad's been hinting he wants for Christmas.

So what's a wannabee holiday decorationista to do? Duh, make her own fun. Trust me, just because you're making it yourself doesn't mean it has to look cheap. Check out these 5 DIY holiday decor ideas that won't break the bank:

The holidays are a time for family, delicious food, an abundance of Mariah Carey Christmas music, and obviously -- giving. There's nothing better than knowing that you're giving someone you love something they really want. With that said, though, all those holiday gifts for your favorite kiddos tend to add up pretty quickly. What's a budget savvy giver to do? Make some of the gifts herself, of course.

Yeah you may think that homemade gifts are lame, but trust me -- there's a whole world of fun, festive options out there that will be JUST as exciting as that new video game. Tastier too, I swear. Check out our list of 5 easy homemade stocking stuffers: