Love / Don't Love - Holiday Edition

It's the most wonderful time of the year.  Right?  At least that's what the song says.  Some days, I absolutely agree.  Other days, I'm not so sure.  Along with all the holiday cheer, there also tend to be some stress and negatives.  I thought I'd air them here.

LOVE Christmas music.  I own 237 songs in this genre, which makes up approximately 12 hours of listening.  My favorite albums?  Michael Buble, The Blenders (all of them!), 'N Sync, Dave Barnes, and Matt Wertz.  They're all on iTunes, so go get 'em.

DON'T LOVE winter weather. So far, we've only had one significant snowfall and a few days of biting cold.  But I know more is coming.

LOVE the Christmas wish segments on a local radio station, Star 102.5.  They touch my heart, humble me, and almost always make me cry.  I have to wait until it's done airing each morning before I do my makeup. Or, I avoid them completely in real time and just wait until they're online and have a huge cry fest.

DON'T LOVE not having enough money to buy gifts for all the important people in my life.  Shopping for others and watching them open a present I picked out is one of my favorite things. I wish I could do some more of it.

LOVE looking at Christmas lights. I walked through Jolly Holiday Lights with a friend a few weeks ago. I'll be driving through them again in a few weeks with another group of friends.  Love it.

LOVE decorating my place.  Now that I'm back in an apartment, holiday decor is the only way I can really change things up.  My Texas Rangers-themed Christmas tree has become a staple. It's adorned with little baseballs and bats along with baseball cards and a few Rangers ornaments. I add new ornaments to it every year.  The rest of my decorations are snowflake/snowman themed, which means I can leave them up until March if I want.

DON'T LOVE people complaining about when others put their decorations up.  I completely agree that Thanksgiving gets lost in the shuffle and it's sad, but lectures and shaming memes on Facebook are not necessary.  I will put my decorations up whenever I want, thank you.

LOVE reading children's letters to Santa. It's one thing I miss about my newspaper days (even though typing and formatting them was a time-consuming chore).  So if you have kiddos, I hope you'll share their letters on your blog (and make sure I'm following it!). Santa photos are also awesome.

DON'T LOVE when people tell me I can't fully appreciate Christmas because I'm childless.  This is an insensitive and inaccurate thing to say.  Stop.

LOVE the cheesy holiday-themed movies that fill the airwaves this time of year.  I will never tire of "Elf," "Home Alone," and "National Lampoons' Christmas Vacation." Seriously.  I even love the Lifetime/ABC Family/Hallmark ones. My favorites are "Holiday in Handcuffs," "Love at the Christmas Table," and "A Boyfriend for Christmas." 

DON'T LOVE that I don't have cable.  This might be the only time of year I lament that decision.  Without cable, I'm left with the selections on Netflix and Hulu.  I suppose I'll make due.

LOVE the Christmas goodies. Cranberry ginger ale, gingerbread cookies, and everything in peppermint.  Oh, and let's not forget the Christmas beers.  Shiner Holiday Cheer tops my list. Yum!!!

Hmmm, it looks like I have more on the positive side than the negative side.

Did I miss anything?  
Any cheers or gripes?