Welcome Christmas

Welcome, Christmas. HOw our house loves to host you each December. (Hey, we love you so much that we started in November this year!)

One of the things that makes our house so Christmasy this time of year is our collection of snowmen. I have somewhere around 2 or 3 dozen 'ornamental' snowmen displayed around the house on shelves, tables, and counter tops. I have lots of snowman ornaments. I have snowmen on towels, place mats, and aprons. And -- beginning back in 2002 -- I started collecting Hallmark's annual 'Dancing Snowmen'.

The Dancing Snowmen are really very cute. My first pair -- the girl and guy snowperson duo that sing "Let it Snow" -- were a gift from my mother in law. After that, she decided to add to my collection each year, and I've been very grateful. There is something so darling about the little stuffed snowmen (and their counterparts) bopping along to holiday music . . . it makes me smile. Meg and Kate smile, too -- they also very happy that Nana has brought the singing snowmen and women into our home.

We've got six of these lovely stuffed dancers around our house this year. And -- wouldn't you know? -- Hallmark is NOT adding to the collection in 2009. They did a dancing Snoopy for the Peanuts anniversary this year. Bah Humbug, Hallmark! Snoopy is a fabulous icon of holiday spirit -- but I want my dancing snowmen.

Anyway, I guess we'll make due with the 1/2 dozen we already own.

Did I mention the girls LOVE them? The do . . . and they love to love them all at the same time. Imagine listening to "We Wish You a Merry Christmas" and "Jingle Bell Rock" and "Holly Jolly Christmas" and "Let it Snow" and various lyrics sung to Nutcracker tunes . . . all sung in cartoony voices from six bouncing stuffed snowmen at exactly the same time. It gets pretty noisy around here these days.

But what kind of mom would I be if I got all the snowmen out, batteried them up, then said, "No, you can't play with them!" I could never do that. Instead, I just take it for as long as I can. Sometimes I manage to stand all the singing until they girls have had their fill, and sometimes I have to say, "Okay, ladies . . . just one more time . . ." in an effort to move their attention elsewhere. It's worth it. Even if it's noisy, something about those snowmen always makes me smile.

The only part that does get a little old is the fighting that sometimes ensues over which snowman belongs to which girl. But even that is short lived . . .

Initial distress over a stolen snowman . .

usually gives way to a game of "Steal Snowy" after only a few short minutes.

Yes, Welcome Christmas. And welcome Snowmen. Here's hoping that the girls get a chance to build a real snowman sometime this holiday season.