21 December 2010

christmas lights

when we were litte, my father used to pile all us kids in the station wagon and take us for nighttime rides to look at christmas lights. every year when i drive past this place, i am reminded of that. he would have loved this spot. do families still do that today - take a december ride for the express purpose of looking at christmas light displays? or do they just notice them as they go about their regular routine?

15 comments:

supermac said...

Oh, we do still. I consider that one of the many joys of Christmas. Happy Holidays to you, all the way from sunny Manila.

Jenny said...

That is one the top of the list of Enno's favorite things to do in Texas at Christmas. You don't see it in Holland and he was so surprised the first Christmas he was with me there. My Daddy used to take my brother, mother and I to look at the lights in the 50's and 60's. He always had them on his house, in the trees and spotted against the shrubs. <:3 Jenny

Tabor said...

I know that my children do with their little ones.

E. Roush said...

For years, my aunt used to load me and my cousins up and drive us around to look at the lights. When we got older, we stopped doing that so much. It's definitely a tradition I'm going to carry on with my kids, though.

susan t. landry said...

we used to do a NYC version of this: slightly commercialized, but charmingly eccentric. lou singer's other passions were NYC architecture and Tiffany stained glass. he was a classic old-time raconteur. so much fun...
www.nytimes.com/1989/12/22/arts/neighborhoods-santa-has-no-trouble-finding.html?pagewanted=2

Star said...

We used to do it, too. It was lots of fun, even for us kids (well, for me, anyway), whereas stuff that was supposed to be fun for us then (and which I enjoy heartily, now), such as fireworks, used to bore me stiff. Go figure. Maybe it was the promise of presents in all those twinkly lights. Now I just enjoy the lights...unless someone out there is planning on giving me a diamond tiara....

melodyg said...

They still do :)

Unknown said...

My mom used to take me when I was younger, and when I got to be a teenager, we'd go to one of the local "fancy" neighborhoods with the mansions and look at their professional lighting display.

I've been aching to go to that "fancy" neighborhood this year, but my husband has no interest in driving around looking at lights, so I might just make my drive alone.

~she~ said...

Wow...what a setup! My Dad used to take us to a house every year when we were little. And the guy still decorates today. We have taken the kids there a couple of times but our favorite place to go is a house near my brother's. They have approximately 25 different inflatables. I need to take a picture and blog it! It's totally horrible!!!

Christin said...

I just wanted you to know that I greatly enjoy your blog, and this post in particular. My family had a very similar tradition when I was growing up. We would pile all 7 kids (yeah, 7) into our van-clad in our Christmas pj's with travel mugs of hot coaco in hand. It was a magical time. This post made me smile =]

Irene said...

I used to take my kids out on Christmas Eve to look at the lights. It was a tradition that we all enjoyed.

Stacey said...

We still do it! And did it just last night. Having a 4 year old helps everyone get in the mood :)

Anonymous said...

back when we kids, my friends and i would tour the neighborhood for a caroling and also sightseeing the different lights and lanterns. my parents would then take all five of us kids to see the moving puppets in c.o.d. (it's gone now,) it was a trip to look forward to every year.

commoncents said...

HA HA! Great post... I'm glad I found your blog!

Steve
Common Cents
http://www.commoncts.blogspot.com

Kelly Jeanette Swift said...

I use to take my nephews when they were little. Now they are grown men. One's wife is expecting, so I hope he continues the tradition when the child gets older.