Sunday Stealing: It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas

It is definitely beginning to look a lot like Christmas. I can't believe we're down to a week to go. Where has the time gone?  Anyway, I'm joining in with Bev and the rest of the thieves for a Sunday Stealing about Christmas. Just click here if you'd like to join in the fun or read the answers from the other players.

A note from Bev, our hostess and finder of the questions:

Last week we talked about things that bug us.  This week (and maybe next), how about things that we like about the holidays.  

Apologies if you do not celebrate Christmas, but perhaps you can change some questions to match the winter holiday you do celebrate.  I would love to hear from people who celebrate Hanukkah, Kwanza, or Winter Solstice!



1. What’s your favorite thing about the holidays?  Getting together with family and friends, having at least a week off work, seeing my grandchildren's excitement, cheesy Christmas movies, the food...and the single most important thing to me, celebrating the birth of Jesus.

2. Do you send out Christmas cards and if so how many do you send?  I've gotten to the point that I only send cards to those who send them to us. I sent them to everyone in our address book and then some for years, but about 5 years ago I began to notice that fewer and fewer people were sending out cards and I'm not going to stress myself or go broke sending them if no one else is. I guess at this point we've got about 12 and that's how many I've sent. 

Personally, I don't miss them. Most people didn't include newsy letters and the ones who did were the ones whose letters made me feel inferior to their perfect, wonderful, exciting lives....kind of a year's worth of Facebook posts in one blast.

3. Be honest: holiday newsletters. Love ‘em or hate ‘em?  As mentioned above, I'm not really a fan. Everyone makes their lives sound perfect in their annual letter and I don't think that way so I always struggled to make mine sound perky and perfect enough.

4. Be honest: photo cards. Love ‘em or hate ‘em? They're okay. It's nice to see how kids grow...if you know them...or friends or family you haven't laid eyes on in years.

5. How soon do you start shopping?  If something catches my eye as being perfect for someone, I might pick up something in the fall, but for the most part I don't start until sometime in November and continue through December right up to Christmas Eve usually.

6. Real or fake tree?  Fake. I don't like mess from a real tree and I worry about them drying out and catching fire. I always burn a pine scented candle, though, so it smells like we have a real one. That scent is so tied to my Christmas memories. Growing up, we always had real trees and Santa always brought them and put them up after I had gone to bed on Christmas Eve...at least until I was 8 or 9. When I'd wake up Christmas morning that first big whiff of pine let me know that Santa had come!

7. When do you put up your tree?  If not the day after Thanksgiving, then before that weekend is over.

8. When do you take down your tree? Either New Year's Eve day or New Year's Day. I like to have things back to normal before I head back to work after the Christmas break.

9. Describe your typical tree (size, decorations, type)  When we were younger we always had HUGE trees. They were live the first few years we were married, then we went to artificial so they could be up longer. A few years ago I started scaling back on the size because no one wants to help decorate or undecorate any more. I shared it yesterday, but here is our current tree...a 6' Alpine decorated in a red and white woodland style. And yes, that is a snowy owl on the top.

10. What do you top your tree with?  Oops! Got ahead of the questions again. A snowy owl holds that honor.  When I had a beach themed tree my husband figured out a way for me to use a big starfish on top.

11. Do you put Christmas lights outside your house?  We hadn't for several years, but with our youngest grandson here quite a bit and the other two being around more often I wanted to do more for them this year.  We put multi-colored LED lights on the deck and in the front yard I put up the arch made of two old doors we made for our daughter's wedding. An inflatable Santa and elf are standing in front of it with one of those laser light things swirling colors all over them.  I have electric candles in the windows.

12. Is there a wreath hanging on your door?  Yes, the front door has a shiny, green tinsel wreath, the one on the backdoor is red. Both have shiny, multi-colored balls on them.

13. Do you hang up stockings? Not since my husband and I are the only ones here, but we do fill stockings for each other and I fill them for all the grandkids. I broke the news to our children that I wasn't filling theirs any longer after last year. Trying to figure out fun things to fill all those stockings was really stressing me. Our daughter is the only one who complained. Turns out that's her favorite part of Christmas morning.

14. Your favorite Christmas Movie(s)  A Christmas Story and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation hold the top honors, but I am a Christmas movie junkie. I like them all.  The funny, campy, cheesy ones are best...however, this year finds me turning on Hallmark or Hallmark Movies & Mysteries at least once a day.

15. Be honest: A Christmas movie you don't like.  I can't think of one.

16. Favorite Christmas Song(s).  Pretty much anything sung by Bing Crosby. I always say it isn't really Christmas until I hear Bing sing.  

17. Be honest: If I hear this/these Christmas songs again I will throw up.  The Twelve Days of Christmas. Ugh. However, this version makes me laugh.

18. Give or Receive? In all honesty, both. I love to give something to someone that they really wanted or that is perfect for them and makes them feel appreciated and loved. But who doesn't like to get a gift, as well.

19. Eggnog or Mulled Cider?  I have to be in the mood for either. I do like flavored eggnog and the plain stuff makes a great base for the richest, creamiest hot chocolate you will ever taste.

20. Ham or Turkey?  One year early in our marriage I thought we should do a "traditional" Christmas dinner and bought (for a small fortune) a goose and an English friend gave my mom a traditional plum pudding. We all learned that year that goose is not a favorite and nobody likes plum pudding. LOL  Anyway, we've pretty much been a ham family since then. My husband went through a phase for a couple of years where he thought we should have a ham and a turkey, but he's gotten over that. Last year we had ham and lasagna. This year the ham will stand alone.

That's it for this week and I don't know if there will be 

a meme next week with it being Christmas Eve and all

and even if there is, I don't know if I will have time to play.

So, I want to take the time this week to say...

Merry Christmas to you and yours!

May your holiday be filled with love and joy.