We haven’t done much decorating for Christmas this year. That’s partly due to being “busy” and partly due to the fact that we share this house with two small beings that will yank, throw, eat, lick and urinate on anything they can reach (and not necessarily in that order). Oh, it’s also partly due to not having a Christmas tree and being too lazy to go to the Chinese market and see if they stock fake ones.
Do you also live with a toddler and a dog? If so, I present to you … the book Christmas tree.
Admittedly it doesn’t quite create quite the same magical ambiance as the real thing. However, it’s up out of reach. It is therefore intact and free from urine and no one has destroyed or choked on any ornaments. Win.
Oh. There’s also Mike’s valiant attempt to do something involving our lights and our poor, struggling bamboo tree that keeps nearly dying. Mike wanted me to put up a picture of it all lit up, because admittedly it did look better all lit up. However, seeing as how it only stayed all lit up for 15 minutes before something blew out, you’ll have to make do with the un-lit up version. Not sure the Charlie Brown bamboo Christmas tree is a win, but let’s give it a “nice try”.
We may not have any decorations or presents, but we have music, and our music is a lot better than our decorating. We made this Christmas playlist last year and I love it. I’ve been playing it since the day after Thanksgiving.
OK. I’ve been playing it since before Thanksgiving.
If you haven’t heard these renditions and you like mellow, soulful Christmas music, meander on over to Amazon or iTunes and listen to them.
The best Christmas playlist … ever
The First Noel/Mary Mary (Sarah McLaglin, Wintersong)
Silent Night (Selah, Rose of Bethlehem)
O Come All Ye Faithfull (Amy Grant, Home For Christmas)
O Come, O Come, Emmanual (Nicole C. Mullen, WoW Christmas)
What Child Is This (Andreas Boccelli & Mary J. Blige, My Christmas)
Breath Of Heaven (Mary’s Song) (Sara Groves, iWorship)
O Holy Night (Selah, Rose of Bethlehem)
Joseph’s Lullaby (Mercy Me, WOW Christmas 2011)
Song For A Winter’s Night (Sarah McLaglin, Wintersong)
Winter Snow (Audrey Assad, WOW Christmas 2011)
Winter Song (Sara Bareilles & Ingrid Michaelson, Winter Songs)
Silent Night (Priscilla Ahn, Winter Songs)
Ave Maria (Rachael Lampa, WoW Christmas)
The Lords Prayer (Andrea Bocelli & The Mormon Tabernacle Choir, My Christmas)
What Christmas music are you listening to this year?
What’s your favorite Christmas album or song?
8 comments
Hi Lisa,
very creative… you’re Christmas trees 🙂 To me, a Christmas tree (and presents) is not an important aspect to Christmas, it is cosy yes, but I much more like the darkness and quiet of advent. There’s is something so powerfully hopeful about advent…
The music: I totally agree on Sarah McLaglin, her album is beautiful. I have also added ‘In the Bleak Midwinter’ to my playlist.
My favourite song this year however is a classical one: ‘The Carol of the Magi’ by John Rutten.
Cheers
Veerle
Thanks, I’ll go have a listen!
Love instrumental Christmas music! I usually listen to whole albums such as:
In the CHRISTMAS Mood – Glenn Miller Band
Hymns & Carols of Christmas – Jim Brickman
For vocals/instrumental:
Christmas – Michael Buble
Noel – Josh Groban
Christmas – Jaci Velasquez
GRP Christmas Collection – Volumne II and III
Thanks! I’ll have to check some of those out.
I LOVE the tree!
Sara Groves’ Christmas album “O Holy Night” or the live version “O Holy Night Prison Show” are both by far my favourites.
Also Carolyn Arends “Christmas: an irrational season” which is based on Madeleine L’Engels series of Christmas poems.
Thanks Ali. I’ll be checking those out.
I can’t definitively say what my all time favorite album or songs are but several years ago I discovered Todd Agnew’s Christmas album, Do You See What I See? and it was a total blessing to me. Last year it was misplaced and sold out a week before Christmas so this year I made sure I got it ordered early enough so I had plenty of play-time. It is still one of my favorite albums – Jesus’ birth told from the many perspectives of Mary, Joseph, Simeon, Elizabeth, etc. It is very cool. Of course, Michael W Smith’s Gloria is always good.
Thanks, Hannah. I’ll check that out.
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