If there is one thing I love, it’s things with tiny animals on them. Any animal really. Even animals I’m not very fond of–if you put them in cute little clothing or have them ride a bicycle or read a book or something else totally human, I’m in. My adoration for these little critters is made very obvious by our Christmas tree.

Jake and I had our first full-sized Christmas tree last year, and just like when I decorated our house, I was determined to make sure that our tree did not look haphazard and amateur. Luckily, more and more stores are starting to catch on that a lot of people like to decorate their tree with a particular theme or aesthetic, so they create collections of Christmas decor that all coordinate. And last year, buffalo plaid was huge. Actually, it’s still pretty big this year. Jake and I love buffalo plaid. We both basically wear nothing but red, gray, and black all winter, so the print fits us pretty well.

Also fortunately for us, Target’s buffalo plaid-themed collection involved a ton of adorable critters. You cannot imagine my excitement when the Christmas displays went up. I distinctly remember standing next to their sample tree and looking at all the bins of ornaments and shedding a tear or two because I knew our tree would be absolutely perfect.

I mean just look at this little guy! How could you resist?? Also, sheep are one of Jake’s favorite animals, so he needed to come home with us. I’ve named him Professor Fluff after a character/enamel pin that I own from The Clever Clove that looks very similar. Behind him, there’s a fun kitty holding a present. I cannot believe how difficult it has been to find cute cat ornaments. All of them are super cartoonish or just not our vibe at all. So if you know where I can find some good stuff, help a girl out.

I didn’t want our tree to be only animals, though. Every tree has to have some good Santa ornaments, and snowmen are a great choice too. I found these guys at a store called At Home this year, which also had a great rustic critter selection which they named Holiday Hoedown. I guess we have the decor taste of countryfolk. I’ll take it.

Whales are Jake’s other favorite animal, so this is our no-whale that goes under our noel ornament. He’s also new this year and gloriously swims above the burlap garland like he’s gliding through the ocean.

We bought these two ornaments on our honeymoon in Edinburgh. The left is a Highland cow (hairy coo) and the right is a(nother) sheep, both playing bagpipes. Jake and I both loved Edinburgh so much, and these fit so well with our tree while also representing three of the best days we’ve ever spent together.

Our fox friend is one of the first ornaments I picked for the tree. We have a handful of fox ornaments, and it’s hard to choose a favorite. But this one is beautifully furry and I know that if I put it any lower, the cats would prey on it. The beer caddy is another new addition this year (from Target), and I put these two together because they remind me of Wyndridge Farm, which is the cidery/brewery where we got married. Their logo is a fox, so for me, these two things are just a natural association.

Also related to our wedding, these two ornaments were given to us as wedding presents from our friend Charlie. She told us that her parents were given a similar gift when they got married, and it is lovely that we’ll have these to remember our special day every year. The ornament between them is a nativity scene that comes all the way from Barcelona. It was a gift from my dad after he went on a trip there last year.

And right in the center of our tree we have this little frame. We got photos professionally taken for our Christmas card this year, and also just because we wanted some up-to-date pictures of the two of us. I hope to keep this for decades so we can show our future kids.

I wish I could take a picture of every ornament on our tree to show you, but I know that would be a bit excessive (except I would totally read someone’s blog if they did that, just sayin’). I honestly love all of our ornaments that much. There’s no filler on our tree. Every ornament is unique and means something to us, which makes our tree as special as I ever could’ve hoped for.