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Jingle My Bells…

I don’t know when it first started, but over the past 5-10 years I have become the biggest sap. I cry at movies. I cry at things like Average Joe. I cry over different stories I read. Not big huge sobbing cry fests, just sappy misty moments with light tears. For awhile I was threatening to make CBS start paying for my Kleenex when I would watch “Touched by an Angel” every week and just blubber away. Then they did the spinoff show, and it was even worse. Is it when you become a parent? Or just something that has to do with age? Chuck pointed out this article about Mel Torme and it had me crying again. I just can’t imagine a better way to get in to the holiday spirit – how amazing.

It seems like the past few years I have really had a hard time getting in to the holiday spirit. I try, I really do. It’s just not there though – I don’t have it in me. This year I brought out the Christmas socks early, I have an adorable Starbuck’s Santa Mug that I use daily at work, and I’ve even been busy converting all of my Christmas CDs to mp3 format so I can listen to them all the time. Still no spirit for me. But I want it – I need to find it. I am tired of feeling like this. I think a big part of the problem is living someplace where we don’t get snow. It’s not exactly a “winter wonderland” when it’s in the mid-70s, you know?

What are some of your favorite Christmas songs or holiday CDs? I need something to put some jingle in my bell – maybe some new holiday music would help? Have any other suggestions?

By Christine

Christine is an Avenger of Sexiness. Her Superpower is helping Hot Mamas grow their Confidence by rediscovering their Beauty. She lives in the Heights in Houston, Texas, works as a boudoir photographer, and writes about running a Business of Awesome. In her spare time, she loves to knit, especially when she travels. She & her husband Mike have a food blog at Spoon & Knife.

29 replies on “Jingle My Bells…”

Last year I bought “Now That’s What I Call Christmas.” It has lots of the old standards plus some songs done by more current artists. And it has one of my absolute favorites, “Little Drummer Boy” by Bing Crosby and David Bowie. I could listen to that over and over and never get sick of it.

There’s also a new 2-disc cd called “The Signature Collection” that looks pretty good.

I know what you mean about not being in the Christmas Spirit. This is my first without my two babies and I’m just not feeling in the celebretory mood. I haven’t even put up the first decoration. As far as music goes, these day the only thing that makes me smile at the thought of christmas is older, really wacked out goof music, like Ray Stevens or Weird Al.

What a great piece about Mel Torme. His daughter, Daisy, is a DJ on my favorite station here in Los Angeles, they play a standards/nostalgia format that include a fair amount of Mel Torme, in fact.

And as far as Christmas music goes, I’d uploaded a couple of songs that are on my sidebar. They’re not standard holiday fare, but they’re definitely great Christmas songs! 🙂

what a nice article about Mel Torme, thanks for sharing it with us.

Ever since I’ve found faith in a higher power, it’s not been hard to get in the Christmas spirit. That’s my “secret” anyway…

It’s not about the songs.

Two of my newest favorites are “Harry for the Holidays” by Harry Connick Jr., and “Sounds of the Season: The NBC Collection” available only at Target I think. And older one that I love is a Boyz II Men christmas CD called “Christmas Interpretations”. Their version of Silent Night is beautiful. I know what you mean about not having the spirit – retail has done it to me 😉

Amy, you’re right – and I’ve been thinking about that too. I seem to have lost touch in the past year or two with my own faith. Not that it ever goes away, but “I’ve tucked it back in a corner because I’m too busy to deal with it right now” sort of mentality. Not a good thing, and I realized the other day I need to focus on that too. I’m sure it would help.

I made myself a CD of the old classic renditions–those by Bing Crosby, Dean Martin, Perry Como, Nat King Cole. I just can’t get into the newer versions done by the likes of Hanson and Britney Spears. I absolutely adore those old versions though–it’s playing in my car right now!

My favorite Christmas songs are:
Oh Holy Night
Oh Come All Ye Faithful
Frosty the Snowman

I, too, suffer from the Christmas blahs. I cannot get into the cheer. I know it is Christmas time, yet I SO don’t care. I just want it to be January already. I haven’t been into Christmas for about 10 years. Is that sad or what?

I’ve got some Christmas carols up on my site over the last couple of days too. I love Christmas carols of all kinds. I found it hard to get in the holiday spirit when I lived in Oklahoma. Just not very Christmasy when it’s 70 out, as you said. I find that baking helps put me in the mood, as does wrapping presents while sipping hot cocoa and listening to Christmas music. 😀

Oh, and I’m a big-time cryer. Such a damn sap it’s embarrassing sometimes. Oh well, I like emily’s theory that I’ll live longer if I go ahead and cry.

I never ever used to cry, but the last few years I find I cry at everything. It’s getting so I can’t watch TV anymore. I have a hard time getting in the spirit since I moved to Florida, too. Not only because of the weather, but because I don’t have my friends and their kids to shop with, and shop for anymore. Christmas shopping puts me in the mood, and baking Spritz cookies, and drinking egg nog or hot chocolate…and lots and lots of Christmas specials and Christmas music.

Troika

If that doesn’t Jingle your bell then humbug to you!

(And I’m the same with the lump in the throat/misty eyes thing… but always have been really so can’t help – and don’t talk to me about Lassie!…. *howls*)

i think the crying IS different after you have kids 🙂 and when i’m premenstrual?? geez. i cry at slightly sentimental phone company commercials and cartoons! sad sad sad.

i seem to have less and less christmas spirit every year and i have to try harder to get it back. the music helps, the smells do, too… and every year i send santa letters 🙂 but wait. hmmm. by the time i’m done, trying to meet my deadline, i’m a rather cranky rat 🙂 but i still do it. probably ’cause every year i hear from at least one parent who tells me how excited their child was to get a letter from santa claus and, well, it was all worth it. every bit 🙂

If you like Celtic sounds, Loreena McKennitt has a lovely cd of Xmas music called ‘A Winter Garden: Five Songs For The Season’. ‘Book of Secrets’ is by far her best ever, but the Christmas music is qyuite lovely. You’ll find song samples listed under sound files here:
http://www.quinlanroad.com/

Have a lovely evening!

Maybe not having the Christmas Spirit is the path leading you back to re-discover your faith/religion ? Jesus’s Birth is the reason we are supposed to celebrate Christmas. The songs, decorations, and pretty wrappings all that is just commercialized junk [pretty and fun junk though LOL] if you base your holiday on gaining the Spirit from that it will leave you empty.

Bing and Bowie doing “Little Drummer Boy” – classic
Deborah Gibson singing “Sleigh Ride”
Much as I can’t stand her, Mariah Carey doing “All I Want for Christmas is You”

Also, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”, “Have A Holly, Jolly Christmas”, and Bruce’s version of “Santa Claus is Coming to Town” 🙂

I like a couple Christmas songs by people that I wouldn’t otherwise ordinarily like – like the Mariah Carey Christmas album, and I really, really love Josh Groban’s “Oh Holy Night”, even though it’s religious, and I’m not big on religious Christmas songs. It gives me goosebumps every time.

As for CDs, the “Now that’s what I call Christmas” CDs are very good, and I’ve been looking at “Maybe This Christmas” and “Maybe this Christmas Too” compilations for some alternatives to narmal Christmas songs(it’s on amazon, check out the track list). And! Brian Setzer Orchestra’s “Jingle Bells” is great too.

Cryer here too. All movies and TV. Can’t really explain it, since I was 16 or so. I very, very rarely cry about real life – just other people’s pretend lives. I broke my leg and didn’t shed a tear, or even whimper, but when Mrs. Brady stands outside that collapsing house with Mr. Brady inside and sings “O Come All Ye Faithful”, I’m a mess.

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