Festive Favorites Link Up

I am really enjoying the holiday link ups lately.  This one seemed like fun, so I decided to link up with Amber and Jennifer today to discuss my Festive Favorites.  

Favorite Christmas Song:

When it comes to Christmas songs, I am a sucker for the classics.  My all time favorite is 'O Holy Night. There is only a short list of Christmas songs that bring me to tears, but this one does it every time...especially if being sung by a choir.  By the time they get to the "fall on your knees" part, I am a weepy mess.  Silent Night when being sung at church on Christmas Eve also does this to me.  

Christmas song you can’t stand:

I cannot STAND "Hey, Santa" by Wilson Phillips.  Tim and I heard it on Thanksgiving and were laughing about the awfulness that is that song.  Hearing this song makes me almost hate Christmas.  Well, it isn't really THAT bad...it is just freakin' awful though...freakin' awful.

Favorite holiday movie:

Anybody who has read any of my blog entries in the past week knows that Christmas Vacation is my all time favorite holiday movie.  It is funny every time I watch it.  I never get sick of Eddie talking about how the shitter is full or about how Audrey's eyes are frozen.  I am looking forward to my yearly viewing of this movie on Saturday.  Can't wait!

Real or artificial tree?

Even from childhood, I have always had a real tree.  This is probably for the best.  I cannot keep plants alive.  I am a murderer.  Plus, I would probably burn the whole house down due to the tree getting too dried out, etc.  It is nice to get a tree out of a box rather than try to tie to to the top of our Prius.  Just sayin'...

White or colored lights?

I prefer colored lights.  They are just so pretty.  I have never decorated with plain white lights.  Don't get me wrong, white lights can be beautiful too...I just like colors more.

We bought the big ass LED lights for our tree last year.  I love the big ones.  It gives it kind of a retro-ish feel.

All matching ornaments or more random personal ornaments?

I love random personal ornaments.  I wrote a whole blog post about just that last week, actually.  I think the random ornaments help tell a story. They are memories.  I love them.

Favorite ornament:

My favorite ornament has to be the last one my grandmother ever purchased for me.  It is so pretty and reminds me of her.

Pretty little silver bells

Angel or star tree-topper?

We have had both, and I like both.  We are using a star now, however.  When we did not have either, we would put a Santa hat on top -- that is also very cute.

Does Santa wrap presents or leave them unwrapped?

Santa wraps his presents.  He is egotistical, so he always must use wrapping paper with pictures of himself on it.  He also tops it off with special Santa Claus gift tags.  

Favorite childhood memory:

Christmas Eve in general was always really special to me.  We would always go to my grandparent's house and open gifts, eat sweet treats, and just enjoy one another's company.  

If I were to pick something specific, I would pick the Christmas morning where my sister and I got a Nintendo.  We had finished opening gifts (or so we thought), and my sister and I were checking out our new stuff.  All of a sudden, from the den, the Super Mario Brothers theme song started playing...loud.  My sister and I ran into the room, and there it was.  We played Super Mario Brothers and Super Mario Brothers 3 for most of them morning...while our parents went back to bed for awhile.  I do not have a copy of it, but my mother actually got a picture of my sister and I running to the Nintendo. Good memories...

Coffee, hot chocolate, or eggnog?

I am going to go with coffee.  I am loving coffee lately -- especially with the fancy International Delights creamers they have on the market now.  YUMMY!

Christmas morning at home or do you travel?

We travel to Indiana.  Santa always visits our house on Christmas Eve morning so that we can have that special time with the kids.  We then travel to see family for Christmas Eve night, Christmas morning, and Christmas day.  

Traditional holiday meal or something unconventional?

I always make a big turkey dinner for lunch on Christmas Eve.  When it comes to Christmas Day, we have dinner at my mother and father-in-law's home.  When we are there we do appetizers.  I love that.  It is kid friendly food and people can just take what they want whenever.  

Personalized photo Christmas cards, store bought cards, e-cards, or “ain’t nobody got time for that”?

For the past couple years, there has always been the IDEA of Christmas cards.  I always have the best of intentions, but they never materialize.  It's nothing personal, my dear friends and family... Maybe next year...