Favorite Holiday Movies

I'm not trying to tell you what to watch or not watch. Tastes in movies vary widely and I will admit I'm way out of the main stream when it comes to popular movies. For example, I've never waited in line for a movie--not because I'm unwilling to, it's just that the movies I want to see don't draw large crowds. The movies I see are never in the bigger auditoriums up close to the front of the multi-plex. The movies on my must-see list are in the little theaters at the back. It's usually just me and a few other weird-os there.

My recent favorites include:

• Moonrise Kingdom
• The Tree of Life
• Anna Karenina
• Beyond Midnight
• About Time
• To Rome With Love

So why would I even attempt to make a holiday movie list? Notice I don't call it a "Best" list, but rather a "Favorites" list.

I've divided my favorites into three categories: 1. Classics. 2. Always Good for A Laugh. 3. Holiday Themed Rom-Coms. (Yes, I am secure enough in my manhood to admit I enjoy a good romantic comedy.)

So here's my list of favorites, actually ranked by how much I like them within the category:

1. Classics

• White Christmas
• Joyeaux Noel
• Miracle on 34th Street (the original)
• It's A Wonderful Life
• Holiday Inn

2. Always Good for A Laugh

• Christmas Vacation
• A Christmas Story
• Elf
• Home Alone
• The Muppet Christmas Carol

3. Holiday-time Romantic Comedy

• While You Were Sleeping
• The Family Man
• Bridget Jones' Diary
• Love Actually
• The Holiday

Not just because it would mess up my lists of fives, but I left one out that would have to be on a favorites list. The Polar Express is a favorite to watch but only with the Grand-Girls.

Let me add that if you haven't seen The Family Man you should. Maybe I'll post more about this film later because it deals with what for me is a theological reality--the concept of "the glimpse." I believe in glimpses and much of my faith is built on them.

Maybe you wondering now if you should be praying for me--absolutely!

In the meantime--do you have an opinion or list to share when it comes to holiday movie must-sees?

Buying My First Doll

I've been in the behavior modification game for a few years now. I know the tricks of mind-molding, motivation, manipulation and marketing. I've become pretty jaded to the sleaziness of mass-marketing, but I still find the power of targeted marketing to be eerily creepy.

For example, how in the H-E-Double Hockey Sticks did some company called The American Girl Doll Company know that this was an appropriate time to send a catalog to the Amazing-Missus and myself?!

Well they did. And now two of these must-haves will be under the tree for the Grand-Girls this Christmas. (Shhhhh, it's a surprise.)

Not only did we need a doll for each, but a change of clothes as well. Their outfits cost about what I spend on one for myself. (Yeah, yeah, I hear you out there. So maybe it's not fair to compare an American Girl doll outfit to a worn out pair of Levis, an old V-neck sweater and a t-shirt.)

I'm not complaining though. The few moments of joy on their faces before they are on to the next present will be "Priceless."

Like that master of "exterior illumination" Clark Griswold, I too want to stage a Christmastime experience so vivid, Norman Rockwell himself will want to come back from the dead to paint it. And maybe Thomas Kincaid will want to come with him because the warm, golden glow from the windows of our happy, little cottage will be ultra-inspirational.

So yes, I'll fall for the pitch of holiday hucksters and buy whatever they promise will help make it all happen--just like thousands of others before me.

I wonder if Mom & Dad charged into Sears and fought other parents for the last Mr. Potato Head on the shelf, knowing it would provide their son hours of creative fun? Or it would have if Mom hadn't needed my potato back to boil up for lunch.

That's right, back in the good ol' days, Mr. Potato Head didn't come with the plastic spud. You had to provide your own torso.

Well for whatever it is that you've fought to have under the tree--an X-Box, a Cabbage Patch Doll, Tickle Me Elmo, or Dallas Cowboy Cheerleader Barbie, I hope that when it gets opened, you get a smile and a hug.

A Christmas Lesson

One of the holiday traditions around our house is the crafting of "gingerbread" houses. Actually they're made of graham crackers, but who cares, right?

No exaggeration, my Amazing-Missus has made hundreds of these things for kids to decorate over the years. And like snowflakes, each one is unique and a fulfillment of the vision of its creator.

So wafting through our house at Christmas time along with the fragrance of candles, spiced cider, and artificial pine, you can also smell sweets, graham crackers and the distinctive aroma of hot glue guns. Sort of like what you would imagine at Martha Stewart's house.

One of the lessons learned early for our boys is that sometimes the culinary arts are meant to be enjoyed only visually, like sculpture or painting or macaroni art.
Many years ago I documented the learning of this lesson in a three-picture photo journal that we'll call: "Like Birthday Cakes--You Can Have Your Gingerbread House, But You Can't Eat It."

In the first photo you'll notice a young Kyle giving a quick lick to his house. I guess he thought this must be okay because big brother is laughing at him and Dad's snapping pictures like it's some big Kodak Moment or something.

So, in shot two, he digs in--making the enjoyment of this art a full-multi-sensory experience.

In shot three the authorities (his mother) have swooped in and put a stop to the whole thing. Painful lesson learned.

The tradition continues. Now the Grand-Girls enjoy decorating their own houses. Here's the photo journal of this year's work including a shot of the now grown-up Uncle Kyle working on his 2013 model. And now, if he wants to eat it when he's done...

A Fear Not Story

A while back I wrote a piece about the story of Christmas. Rather than repost here I want to link you to the blog of a dear friend, Rob Carmack. Rob graciously asked me to write a guest post for his blog, and so you'll find the piece at www.robcarmackwords.com.

While you're there be sure to check out Rob's other posts. I love his thought-provoking insights and always learn something.