Thursday, December 6, 2007

Christmas Tag

Thanks to Kelly for this fun idea.

1.Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping paper, because I think it's more festive and looks more quaint when the gifts are all piled up under the tree. Bags tend to be too tall and therefore have to be placed next to the tree, which just isn't the same. Unless, of course, there are so many presents crammed under there that they're pouring out from underneath. That's a different story altogether.

2. Real tree or artificial? Was this question included just so that I'd have to defend my fake tree again? Dammit.

3. When do you put up the tree? Nearly always the weekend after Thanksgiving. The longer it's up the better, in my opinion.

4. When do you take the tree down? I like having it still up for my birthday (the 31st), so usually I take it down in the first week of January.

5. Which do you prefer: Hot chocolate or Apple Cider? Hot chocolate, mmmmmm.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? My mom was a single parent at the time, and I don't remember how much Cabbage Patch Dolls cost back then when people were pulling guns on one another and whatnot in store parking lots just to get their hands on one for Christmas, but it was too much for my mom to afford. Or so she told me. Christmas was on a Sunday that year, and my mom was so excited for me to get the doll that she let me open it the night before on Christmas Eve. I begged her to let me take it with me to church the next morning, she refused, I pleaded some more, and she finally agreed to let me bring it but I had to keep it in a paper shopping bag. Every two minutes or so I'd lean down from the pew and peek down into the bag on the floor to make sure Nicolette was still there . . .
7. Do you have a nativity scene? Yes, handed down to me from my mom and dad when my grandparents passed away and they inherited their's.

8. Hardest person to buy for? My dad. The man has no hobbies!

9. Easiest person to buy for? Uhm, myself? Usually during my shopping I find a little somethin'-somethin' for myself. Just a token.

10. Worst Christmas gift ever received? A coworker who had never before given me anything at the holidays gave me a Wheel of Fortune wristwatch. You pushed a button on the side and the face lit up and the theme song played. It was really awkward. I didn't know if he meant it as a gag or what. He acted as though it were perfectly serious.

11. Mail or email Christmas card? Definitely mail.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? If I had to pick only one it would be A Charlie Brown Christmas. It's iconic. Or The Year Without a Santa Claus (the stop action one with the Cold Miser and the Heat Miser). Or White Christmas. Oh, oh, or Meet Me in St. Louis. But I'll watch and find enjoyment at just about any cheesy Lifetime or Hallmark Channel holiday movie. It's a guilty pleasure.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? When the mood strikes me. Sometimes that's in November, and unfortunately sometimes that's around December 22.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Uh, yeah. But not anything you've ever given me.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Homemade fudge. And when I say "homemade" I mean fudge that someone else has made at their home and given to me. Without nuts.

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Clear. But Matt really likes the small multi-colored ones. I have to admit that this year when I saw the Rockefeller Square tree lighting I thought the colored lights looked festive.

17. Favorite Christmas song? I don't think I have one favorite. I have some dreaded ones that I hate, though: "The Twelve Days of Christmas," pretty much any cheeseball/spoof song ("Grandma Got Run Over By a Reindeer" and its ilk) . . .

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Right now I guess I prefer being at someone else's home--namely, my parents'. But there's something cozy and sweet about being in my own house, sleeping in my own bed, too. I imagine once we have kids we'll prefer being at home.

19. Can you name Santa's reindeer? Yup, but only if I sing them in my head.

20. Do you have an angel on top or a star? I have an angel, the one that belonged to my grandma.

3 comments:

Molly W. said...

Amen on the fudge w/ no nuts! And Denise...you might need to defend the fake tree forever. :) xo

Kellyry said...

Ah, Cabbage Patch Kids. I can just imagine you so thrilled to have one that you are willing to keep it in a paper bag at your feet, just so you can have the pleasure of gazing upon it during Church.

Speaking of Church, while I enjoy it as an adult, is there a child out there that appreciated Christmas Eve church? Ugh. It was torturous.

Oh, and I agree about hokey Christmas songs. CANNOT STAND "Grandma...Run Over...Reindeer" A

And I agree about cheesy Lifetime/Hallmark/ABC Family Christmas movies. I recorded 2 last night and have 4 others set to record tonight and tomorrow night. :-) Can't wait to watch!

b said...

Love your list! Yes, I agree with Molly, you'll never convince me about the fake tree. It's almost a question of morality. I am sad for your kids if you don't repent from your wicked pseudo-tennanbaum ways.

Might try to make my own answers to this fun list...some time, when I have a minute...uh...might actually be after we get home.