How Much Do You Love the Holidays?

A LOT! That's how much I love the holidays, and not just because I have a week off between Christmas and New Year's. I like that there is something else to say when rude cashiers choke out a, "Have a nice day," to you before you leave the store. A quick, "Have a Merry Christmas," back at them sends a little tinge of guilt for being so grumpy. Ah, the holidays.

I love houses that are lit up more than Times Square because you know that they feel the spirit too. They don't care that their electric bill is insane for one month and they "aren't related to LILCO," like my grandmother used to scream at me when I left the light on in my bedroom. These families just want their house to be a festive sight as cars pass by. My parents' house on the other hand, now that is an interesting site. My Dad has the projection screen with a Santa flying his reindeer upside down in a circle and the lights blink along with the music that plays loudly from the side of the house. This year, apparently, my parents' house is "that house." You know the house; the one that people pass by and say, "What were they thinking when they decorated this year?" Yeah, we don't know what Dad was thinking. I am hoping it was something along the lines of, "It's freezing out here. Let's just throw some lights up and get back on the couch for the Giants game."

Then there's the Christmas baking. I bake cookies, brownies, cupcakes, etc. This year I think I might try my hand at a few of my friends' recipes and pass them off as my own. (Just kidding Colleen.) I just love to bake and sometimes I don't even eat what I make, but I do like watching other people eat them and worry about their own caloric intake.

The craziest part of my holiday is the gift giving. I buy for almost everyone I know: my husband, my family, my friends, my friends' kids, my landlady, my boss, the people I work with, my dog, etc. This year I even added my yoga instructor at work. (It was something small. Don't get all "brown noser" on me. It wouldn't get me anywhere in yoga any way. Come on.) But, every year it never fails; I always think of buying gifts for people I barely know. For instance, year after year I think about giving gas station attendants or cart attendants at Target gloves or mittens because they must freeze out there, but then I think, "I will look creepy and gloves come in sizes. Who knows what size they are?" I have also thought about buying gifts for the folks at McPeak's Adult Home because I haven't had grandparents since 2003, but I can't afford to buy for them all and I can't just buy for the Italian and Puerto Rican ones that remind me of my grandparents. That would just be wrong. So, I just buy for the people that I know and say, "Merry Christmas" to those that I don't know because a smile is contagious and I am giving them something after all.

It is only 4 days until Christmas, but Christmas Eve is really my favorite holiday because my family all gets together to be silly and spend time with each other, and I like the anticipation of it all. I mean, Santa comes on Christmas Eve. Yep, I still believe in Santa Claus and I am glad that I do because it will make it easier to convince my children that He exists (yes that is a capital H). This year, I don't think I made the naughty list, so I am hoping he drops off some good stuff. I think I might even sweeten the deal and leave him some cookies that night too. I think he slips into my house through the air conditioner vent and feeds Duncan Beggin Strips so he doesn't bark. Then he tiptoes into the living room around 3 a.m. and realizes that he is at the wrong house and hops over to my parents' house to drop off my presents. Honestly, every year my presents say, "From, Santa" or "From, Chilly Willy" or "From, Yukon Cornelius," and no my mother does not write them on the tags; they are really from who they say they are from...really.

Anyway, this is all what I have made up in my head for the holiday season. Don't you just love the holidays? :)