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1216 DECEMBER
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walkin? in a
christmas
wonderland? decorating for the holidays has become a huge task. you can size up a person quickly by the way they dress, the kind of car they drive, and the company they keep. but, i think you never really know a person until you see their outdoor holiday decorations
. it happens every year; people who don?t so much as display a lawn ornament, suddenly cover their entire yard
with nativity scenes, pinwheel angels, and jumbo plastic candy canes. take my neighbors for example: a nice, quiet couple who won?t even leave their car parked on the driveway overnight. as of yesterday, they are the proud owners of eight movable reindeer, a light up christmas tree, a sleigh, and a 10-foot inflatable snowman. i am all for showing holiday spirit, but for as long as i?ve known them, there wasn?t anything to suggest this was coming. i can understand it, though. christmas decorations are much like commercial jingles and the chicken pox? they?re contagious. another thing about christmas decorations, besides their obvious festive appeal, is they tell you a great deal about their owners. you can tell who is handy with a jigsaw, who spends their weekend roaming craft fairs, and which family is deeply religious. there are some houses in the neighborhood that we refer to by their christmas decorations all year long. for instance, the house around the corner is known as ?the house with the blue icicle lights.? i have decided to not go overboard this year. we will have just a wreath on the door with a simple bow. nothing like last year?s life-sized santa on a rope swing, hung from a tree limb lined with lights. however, my husband thinks it?s just not christmas unless you do something outside. he claims it has nothing to do with our neighbor?s elaborate display because, ?competing with friends over yard decorations is just plain silly.? that was until i came home yesterday and the neighbors had added a dozen plastic candy canes and a couple oversized polar bears to their front yard. i?m not too worried about it. however, my husband just headed to the front yard hauling santa to the swing, measured the distance of our front porch for icicles, and asked me if i prefered a holographic snowman family or a wire-framed nativity scene. just plain silly, he says. stay connected enter to win free goodies and be the first to know what's going on around town at brparents.com the weekender receive the latest news and trends right in your inbox. subscribe at brparents.com facebook facebook.com/ batonrougeparents talk to me amy@brparents.com brpm app download our free app at google play or in the apple app store amy foreman-plaisance publisher/editor in chief in every issue / a m o t h e r ? s v o i c e 12 brparents.com | december 2016
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