What Gets You In The Christmas Spirit?

When the guests start arriving on Thanksgiving and the Saturday right after when our club has an open house. Its Christmas from that point on.

I'm more on the Grinchy side.

Starts a couple days before Thanksgiving, as we are getting ready for our churches free turkey day dinner for the under privileged and continues through the New Years bowl games.  Jim & Colleen R

Christmas Carols.  Traditional ones, and for some reason, especially, Burl Ives singing Jolly Christmas!

Matthew 1:18-2:12

 

Gilly

Since I do 100% of the Christmas decorating, I darn well better "get the spirit" early! One tree with a layout in the living room, one with a layout in the dining room, lots of other in-house stuff, along with a outside tree, lights, and electric luminary. The big tree takes 6 hours just to put the ornaments on it. I'm also in charge of buying and sending the Christmas cards. as well as wrapping all the gifts. My ancestry is German, so it's in my blood.

My wife bakes cookies, buys the gifts (4 kids, 8 grandkids), and entertains, including a open house on the 26th.

Being around small children is what energizes and propels me into Christmas mode. As the song lyric goes, Christmas is for children... Once the kids grow and leave the house, (and before grandchildren come along,) Christmas takes on a new significance. Equally important, spiritual, and festive but with an entirely different aura around it, (for me at least.) 

The appearance of Lemax at local stores...

 

Tuba Christmas (one of my other hobbies)

 

24/7 Christmas music on the radio

 

Corny Christmas movies

 

The huge inventory that fills up the LHS...

 

But most of all, Church activities related to the holiday....

I think it really begins when we pick the needing Angles off the tree at church. We raised boys so we always pick little girls 5 to 8 years old. Then we start shopping in the malls and all over for what they wished for. You start hearing the music and see all the decorations. It is actually the only time in the year that I enjoy shopping with my wife.

 

Larry

This year work is keeping me from the Christmas Spirit.  Vacations that were scheduled are slowly disappearing.  The work load and time tables mean less time off and more stress.  I don't see this being a stellar year for Christmas spirit for me until we hit December 24th.

Look around and you will find the spirit of Christmas is in the air. Decorations, lights, Christmas Carols being played, gift giving, our mode of dress, cold weather, midnight mass, and occasionally snow. Its all around us and family and friends all come together to celebrate this joyous day and its wonderful message of hope. Its also train season and that adds to the fun as well. It is my favorite holiday

When I left for college, and now that I'm off on my own, I've been missing the stuff that usually got my in the spirit: decorating the house, decorating the tree (accompanied by the Beach Boys Christmas Album), shopping for presents, watching tv specials.  I still do some of this, but when i'm by myself decorating my "charlie brown tree" and shopping online, it's not as special.  I've always made it back home for Christmas, but i've felt like i've been missing out on the whole buildup, the whole christmas season.  Listening to Christmas music always helps cheer me up, but i'm counting the days until I get to go home (only 3.5 more!).  And a little snow wouldn't hurt

The live Nativity at a local church.

That is what moves me to the spirit.

Alcohol... I start at Halloween and end on Jan.2  when I have to go back to work.

The first viewing of "A Christmas Story!"

 

Actually, it'll be when my boys get home from college for break. One is flying in from the sunny south tonight and the other is due later in the week from the chilly midwest. 

Cold temps, snow, and egg nog with a bit of the old Captain Morgan stirred (not shaken) in.  Avast ye matey's.   

This record.

 

Pete

Church. If you attend church regularly it's pretty hard to not get in the mood.  By the time you celebrate His coming all through Advent, you are well into the spirit.  The shopping for family gifts keeps you in the spirit too.  At my age, memories of joyous Christmas's past abound.  Being a life-long church choir member with all that beautiful music really gets me in the mood too.

.....

Dennis

       
       


YES!!! I've participated in several myself, although I'm not sure if I'll go this year.  It also triggers memories of my orchestra days; the Christmas concerts always seemed extra special.

Dark, gray, cold-looking skies usually get me in the mood.

Unfortunately, I have not found a church home yet, so that part is definitely missing.  Ultimately, people (or the lack thereof) can make or break the spirit of the season.  Without them, everything else--even trains--loses its specialness.

My grandson!

For the most part I am burned out by now. Christmas stuff out mid October place me OUT of the mood/spirit.

I do like to watch 'It's a wonderful Life' each year....and 'A Christmas Story'....is as close as I gets for me.

Quiet day or two with the Grandkids next week will be good.......if I can spend the day with them.....pizza, trains, movies will be great.

 

K.C. Jones,

    For me Christmas has always been my favorite time of the year, incredible memories of when I was young, spent with my family at Christmas time, are wrapped around my O Gauge Trains, and my belief in God.  It is real easy to get into the Christmas Spirit,

when the manger is placed on the fire place mantel, and the Christmas trains start to go up in the formal living room, you can feel God's Sprit in our home.  Also participating on the OGR at Christmas time further elevates the fantastic Christmas spirit, we have some incredible Christian people here on the OGR, that continue to amaze me.  The OGR helps magnify the Christmas Spirit in our home.

PCRR/Dave

When the fullness of time had come, God sent forth His Son.

 

I enjoy the trains, trees, lights, hustle and bustle, cookies, friendship and giving at Christmas, it's easy to get in the spirit right about now. But without the knowledge that God sent His Son for me, God's Word (i.e., Matt 1:18-2:12) and Advent worship, it all loses meaning, it's just another holiday. Have a blessed Christmas! And happy railroading. 

I have been married to a wonderful woman for the past 2 1/2 years. Elizabeth loves everything about the Christmas season and just being around her would put anyone into the Christmas spirit. Our home looks like the Christmas issue of Better Homes & Gardens with all of her creative work. And Christmas layouts, she loves them and was the biggest supporter in our household for the Gold Edition PE passenger train.

 

Christmas is a time to be thankful and I am very thankful for this special lady and all she does for me.

 

I hope that many of you feel this same way about your wives. Make sure you constantly remind them of how much they mean to you.

When I go shopping for the kids and grandkids and this song plays on the radio.

 

Volpin

So cool!

Son arriving home from Afgan tomorrow. were headed to his home in Enterprise Alabama in the early AM. Your song hits the spot. I couldn't help but listen to it twice.

 

Larry

"Son arriving home from Afgan tomorrow. were headed to his home in Enterprise Alabama in the early AM."

 

Great news Larry!! This should make this a very Merry Christmas for your family. Drive safe.

 

 

 

Jerry

About 3 of these!

 

Jerry:  In case you haven't already tried it, treat yourself to a bottle of Gentleman Jack.  Over the rocks, it is one of the best sippin' drinks for the holidays (or any other time). Bob Severin

This ALWAYS gets me jacked.  Best in FULL SCREEN mode, with the volume UP.

 

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mnk0KjWxgMA

 

And, for all the TSO fans, there is this.

 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdOGTHy-4ls

 

 

 

It's different for me every year.  I have no one special trigger nor time frame.  Some years the bell doesn't ring for me until midnight Christmas Eve and other years it rings the day after Thanksgiving.   This year it rang Dec 6th when we put up our Christmas tree and had a nice dinner and watched Fred Claus; the first of our annual Christmas movies we watch every week leading up to Christmas.  It rings louder every day this year which has me quite happy and content.

-Greg

Christmas starts for me on November 1st. I start decorating and will be done by thanksgiving. Gives me the whole month of December to relax, have fun And play trains. 

 

Yes Virginia, there is a Santa Claus.

yes I believe, in family, and the reason for the season, Jesus. 

 

Merry Christmas to everybody and a happy and healthy new year. 

Julie Andrews singing traditional Christmas Carols and our sons quarterly report has come back cancer free with most levels in normal range. We get to see him in a few days. !!!!!!!!!! A Gold polar Express is wrapped and ready. Doesn't get any better than that! This Christmas will be a happy one!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

What Lee said...  

 

- Mike

Snow!

I haven't been into it much this year. After a bad year with wife getting sick, I was laid off, her missing a lot of work, losing our home thanks to a crap landlord and a place that should have been condemned and on and on, I just found out last Friday that my new job of 6 months (and the worst company I have EVER worked for), gave me my Christmas bonus of no raise, my hours cut and that I am next in line to be let go in their staff reduction program. So, not much of Christmas cheer this year.
Just a lot to be thankful for instead. My wife still here who gave me the greatest anniversary gift last month, we have our own roof over our head again that isn't a crap hole after being pretty much out on the street for a couple months. We still have our 6 kitties we fought tooth and nail not to lose, I didn't have to sell my/our trains (she might have killed me if I did it this time after selling my entire collection a few years ago during a similar situation. She wasn't happy about that knowing what they meant to me) but I do have my G.I. Joe collection for sale hint hint We have food in the house (without having to grovel to the government), our utilities are still on. I can run trains a little here and there till I can get the materials to start our layout. Our vehicles that we lived in are in bad shape but still running and getting us to work even though both need to be put into Spacedock for refits and overhauls. Our new landlord kept pestering me till I got the lights up around the house lol (and we're the only ones in the little park with any up) and more to be thankful for. It was just too much this year and every inch we take forward, we're getting kicked back 3 feet. The Christmas season just came up too fast this year.
Listening to the Christmas songs on the Joy FM keeps reminding me what Christmas is REALLY about, and it's to celebrate the birth of our savior Jesus. I have to catch myself from time to time from turning into the Grinch and just remember to be thankful.

       
       


That is great news on your son. God is good, and a GOLD PE just tops it off. Merry Christmas indeed!

 

 

No offense to Lionel, but this ad could easily work just as well if they used the words "Model Trains"