» It’s beginning to look (and sound) a lot like Christmas

It’s beginning to look (and sound) a lot like Christmas

We put our Christmas decorations up the weekend after Thanksgiving. And that’s, like, now. Which means we are well on the way to our house looking like Christmas.

TwinkleToes has been able to help out a lot more this year, and let’s just say our family tree is really bottom heavy with ornaments. Not that I’m complaining – I love that it’s bottom heavy because that means TT and GG both got to take part in a big way this year.

We’ll do the formal tree today and I’m not really sure how we’re going to let her help with that one. There are a lot of not-easily-breakable ornaments on the family tree and I lined them all up for TT to easily get to. But the formal tree has a lot of really really fragile stuff, and there is a hardwood floor under it, not carpet. The girls have got this skating rink thing, I think I’ll let them set it up and play with it while RK and I do most of that tree. The skating rink sits on a table and I think there must be magnets under the rink that move the figurines around on the rink – it’s kind of cool and it should keep them occupied at least five or maybe even ten minutes. Not long enough, of course, but it’s a start.

It’s also beginning to sound a lot like Christmas in our house – here is what I tend to play the most around the house:

Glittergirl has the David Archuleta Christmas From The Heart CD on her MP3 Player, so we’ve been listening to that a good bit, too. For those who may not have been around when we bought it, it has a speaker instead of headphones, which means we all get to hear her music when she listens to it. It also means I don’t have to worry about hearing damage from headphones or earbuds or whatever, too. And it means I’m familiar with the songs my daughter listens to. I know parents who have no idea what their child’s favorite song is this month, because their child listens to their MP3 player with headphones on, so the parents aren’t really part of that area of their child’s life.

We also have:

I also have a CD of the complete Nutcracker, which I converted to MP3’s a while back, and when I did, it didn’t tell me the name of the CD, and for the artist each track just says “various artists”, so I can’t tell you who or what it is without digging the CD out, which I don’t plan to do today.

I actually have a lot more Christmas music than this, as I guess I’ve acquired a lot over the years (and a few new ones this year) – but these are what we tend to listen to the most. When we are actively singing along then we pull out The Chipmunks, or another album with words (the two big collections are in the same folder so they get listened to together)… but for background music we have Kenny G or Mannheim Steamroller or The Nutcracker in the background. For the two big Christmas collections I’ve taken out the songs we don’t really like and just left in the songs we sing along to, but between those two collections there are a lot of songs we enjoy listening to and singing along with. Oh, the Elvis one? My mom loves that one. I gave her the CD so she can listen to it at home.

Do you have a favorite holiday album your family loves to either listen to, or sing along with? There I go again, saying “album” instead of “CD”. GlitterGirl enjoys giving me grief about that. Albums are from the dark ages, apparently.

This entry was posted on Saturday, November 28th, 2009 at 11:22 am and is filed under Book, CD, & DVD Reviews, Misc Discussions. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

akina Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 11:28 am

We love Aimee Mann-One more Drifter in the Snow.
Really beautiful. Kids love it too. There is a great version of the Grinch.

imdmom Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 11:36 am

Have you heard any George Winston songs? He’s a wonderful pianist! His music is sooo calming! I have December and Winter that I love to listen to and recently found he also has, I guess, “redone” the Charlie Brown Christmas music. Very cool! Check him out…I bet you’d love him, also!

jetwaiting Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 11:46 am

All done decorating finished on Thanksgiving morning – guess it is the way to keep the mind occupied. A great CD is John Denver Rocky Mountain Christmas. I have listened to it so much it will probably wear out soon.

jenele Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 11:48 am

John Denver and the Muppets;)

drewsmom Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 2:31 pm

The Christmas Revels

directed by John Langstaff

waiting2bmummy Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 2:52 pm

Ever since I was a little girl we played the album ‘Holiday Singalong with Mitch Miller’ (yes it was a looonnngg time ago..the 60’s!) and my brother gave the cd a few years back, so I love that one and of course Charlie Brown Christmas and George Winston’s December…Looking a lot like Christmas here too!

Interestedlurker Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 5:19 pm

{Please} Celebrate Me Home by Kenny Loggins!

ratgirl Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 5:35 pm

We have Thanksgiving/fall decorations up now, and won’t start switching to Christmas for another week or two – except for the Advent calendar and the Advent wreath which starts tomorrow. The season now is Advent, not Christmas. We will get the tree and the major Christmas decorations up the week before Christmas, and they won’t come down until Epiphany. I am a traditionalist :-)
BTW, when I lived in Germany as a child, most people put their trees up on Christmas Eve. This was in the 70’s. I don’t know if that custom has held on there or not.

skye06 Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 5:38 pm

Carol of the Bells by Transiberian Orchestra! Makes me want to dance.

wrigsassy Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 5:39 pm

The Carpenters Christmas album–gee, I am old!!

LouiseMe Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 6:22 pm

For instrumental or mainly instrumental, we LOVE any of the Windham Hill cd’s. We also love John Denver’s Rocky Mountain Christmas and Sarah McLachlan’s Wintersong. Another favorite is Amy Grant’s albums–most are traditional carols with only a couple of super-Christiany songs you can leave out if that’s not your thing. Same goes for Jo Dee Messina’s A Joyful Noise. Highly recommend any of those!

MacyGirlInChina Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 7:02 pm

Being Canadian, we celebrated or Thanksgiving last month, but we are well on our way to getting into the Christmas spirit. We have so far purchased a few gifts, but the tree will not go up until mid December. Can’t stand the thought of all those needles in the carpet too early!

I positively looooove Nat King Cole & Bing Crosby at Christmas. Their voices are fantastic.
BTW- I am only 38, not 78 :)
And it is not Christmas until I hear the Cheech and Chong version of, well, I don’t really know the name of it, and it isn’t really a song. It’s about Santa and his reindeer and their commune. Makes me laugh out loud!
Does anyone know what that skit/song is called?

waiting4Ash Says:
November 28th, 2009 at 7:39 pm

Haven’t read everything yet but this is one of my favorite “kids” Christmas album, and it definitely dates me, John Denver and the Muppets A Christmas Together.

kms Says:
November 29th, 2009 at 12:11 am

Bing Crosby and Celtic Women

kms Says:
November 29th, 2009 at 6:05 am

Is it Santa Claus and his old lady?

Something about brownies and living in the projects and getting hassled…

ldw4mlo Says:
November 29th, 2009 at 2:15 pm

December by Kenny Loggins
Johnny Mathis, Christmas Album
Barbara Streisands Christmas Album
A Very Special Christmas I and II

ldw4mlo Says:
November 29th, 2009 at 2:16 pm

Oops forgot

Brian Setzers Swing Christmas Album
The Nutcracker