One of the most exciting parts of the holiday season is decorating. Not necessarily for a particular holiday, but simply getting festive for the coming winter. My family enjoys going above and beyond for our holiday decorations, especially my mom. Despite the fact that we are Jewish, my mom still hangs Christmas lights on our house, calling them “festive lights.” These lights are my mom’s favorite decoration. It is November and ours are already up and lit since late October.

Our Snoopy and Woodstock big figurines can always be seen in our front yard from the moment someone pulls up onto our street. On the inside of our house, our living room table is covered in fake snow, we have a village on the living room cabinet and most notably our Christmas tree stands in the corner to fully bring the festivities to our home. We have a sleigh by our fireplace for all the Christmas cards that we receive. Our elf on the shelf of course arrives on December first to watch over my seven year old sister to make sure she is on her best behavior. Hanukkah is usually right around the corner once December hits, and my mom loves to arrange the presents under the tree as soon as she can, which is why we get a tree so early. Of course, we also have a Menorah that is waiting on the kitchen table to be lit for the nights of Hannukah.

I feel that the holidays are a time when everyone can be involved in the holiday spirit. It is the time of the year when everyone can participate in decorating their home. “I always have lights on the outside of my house that looks like icicles as well as a reef on the front door,” said Student Services Coordinator Barbara Tauskey.

“Around the doors is colored lights and collectable santa caluses’s all over my house which range from small to big. We have a six foot tree decorarated with lights and many sentimental ornaments. My dining room is decorated with a garlent and all the dining room chairs have big red bows.” Tauskey’s home seems like such a welcoming and festive place to be. I am sure she also has lotions that smell like different Christmas scents as well.

“The theme for my house this year for Christmas is red and white,” said Director of Student Life and Leadership Alisia Bergholm. “I love the clean look of keeping it simple. We used to buy a real tree but one year it was so dry I thought it was going to burn the house down so now we buy it from costco. I love the smell of douglas fur so I always get a candle that smells like christmas trees so my house still has the holiday scent.”

As the festive season begins, I look forward to seeing all the holiday lights and decorations. I love walking into my house and smelling the amazing fragrance of our Christmas trees along with seeing all of our holiday decorations.