Are you having a holly, jolly Christmas?

It makes me happy that even though we haven't hit Thanksgiving yet the Christmas ads are already popping up on TV. I'm not being sarcastic. It really does make me happy. I love Christmas. I love snow, I love decorations, I love hot chocolate, I love holiday movies, holiday-themed pies and cookies, footy pajamas, holiday cards (preferably with long letters inside about how "The Orsons" or whoever are doing), snazzy holiday outfits, crunching ice beneath the toe of my boot (you know when the ice is real thin on the sidewalk or somewhere and it breaks like glass?), sledding, rosy cheeks, sitting on Santa's lap (yes I still do that), thinking about reindeer, buying gifts for everyone (and receiving a few, too), the Abruzzo family Christmas party with Aunt Susan's little weiners wrapped in those pillsbury croissant biscuit things (and hopefully a rousing game of whatever that game is with the dice and the money), cats lying in empty gift boxes and dogs shredding up discarded wrapping paper... But mostly I love the cakes and pies. Cakes and pies, cakes and pies!