This is one place where I usually enjoy movies more than books, mostly because it is easier to share them with friends and family. From Kris' family we have the tradition of watching a Muppet's Christmas Carol. My family has always loved Christmas Vacation and has watched it enough times that several parts of the movie get quoted, even when it isn't Christmas. Others that I love to watch each year include Little Women, Love Actually, and The Grinch(the cartoon).
One of the strangest additions that I've made to this list is Tim Burton's The Nightmare Before Christmas. Many, especially those who haven't seen it, will argue that it is a Halloween movie. Not really. When you see the main character, Jack, first glimpse Christmas Land it will remind you of everything you love about the holiday. You get to see his first taste of snow, the adorable little elves who live there, and of course the kindness of the (more than plump) Santa Claus who is a wonderful lesson in patience!
Still there is a place in my heart for all of the wonderful Christmas books. Romance novels really cling onto this holiday and many romance authors have at least one Christmas themed book. It is fun to read about the love that can spring up around the mistletoe! I don't really have any favorites to recommend, although this year Lisa Kleypas put out a wonderful modern one title Christmas Eve at Friday Harbor. Each year I like to pick up a couple of ones that I haven't read so that I can dive into something.
Then there are the songs. My husband works in retail. I work at a hotel. We hear Christmas songs all of the time. Still there are certain ones that no matter how humbuggy you feel, they tend to lift you up. My favorite has always been Tom Petty's Christmas All Over Again. For one thing it doesn't get overplayed as much and it makes me want to run around the house, bake cookies and decorate. Since I hate to bake, this is quite a strange feeling!
What about you? Is there a movie, a book, or a song that let's you know (in a good way) that Christmas is nearly here?
Our family always has to watch Charlie Brown Christmas. I get a little tired of Christmas songs that get overplayed, but the Charlie Brown Christmas music played by the Vince Guaraldi Trio I can listen to over and over and over again. Picturing the ice skaters as flakes of snow are falling and the soft music in the background calms me down like almost nothing else.
ReplyDeleteWe've definately got enough snow to share. I don't mind the snow as much as the cold. We've had too many days in a row of single digits. We just might get some sun today with a high in the 20's. It will seem like we've moved to Florida. Well, maybe not quite.
Our family's favorite holiday movie is "The Christmas Story" featuring Ralphie. One of the reasons we like it is because our youngest son Scott had a strong resemblance to Ralphie when he was younger. Another reason is because the movie plays over and over for 24 hours. So if you have to get up and eat a holiday dinner, you can always go back and catch the movie the next time. As for songs, I've always liked Jingle Bell Rock, which is a rockabilly Christmas song from the 1950s written and performed by Bobby Helm. Of course, my all time favorite Christmas song is singing Silent Night by candle light at the Christmas Eve service. I remember one time we were in Roundup on Christmas Eve and mom got the chills as she walked out of the church. It took a lot of logs on the fire before she warmed up. The rest of us were looking for shorts and T-shirts to wear. Great memories. Hope you enjoy your Christmas in Maine. Hopefully, you'll be living between Randy and me in Mandan next year for the holidays.
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