Sometimes it’s nice to just spend a few evenings curled up in the living room, munching on Chex Mix while watching your favorite holiday classics.
Unfortunately, I’m way too crazy busy right now to do anything of the sort myself, but if I had the time, these would be among my own top selections…
A Claymation Christmas SpecialQuite possibly my favorite childhood Christmas program of all-time – we watched the VHS tape of this delight featuring the one and only California Raisins over and over again til it was all but ruined! The animation just fascinated me, and needless to say, it was pretty funny, too…
Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band ChristmasSure, I could’ve gone with the old standby classic that is A Muppet Family Christmas, but instead I decided to offer up this more obscure tale that got plenty of play in our house just the same. Just a simple story of an otter vying for the top prize in the local talent show, and a great holiday message about cherishing what’s truly important.
Home AloneI don’t know what it is, but you just can’t get enough of watching people getting hit in the face with paint cans this time of year! I probably saw this for the very first time when I was right around Kevin McCallister’s age myself, so I’m sure there was plenty of “inspiration” to be gained from his trickery!
Die HardHey – they’re all attending a holiday party before the chaos ensues, the ending credits roll with Christmas music playing … anyone who claims Die Hard isn’t a Christmas movie can take it up with John McClane…
A Garfield ChristmasAlthough my sister was always the official Garfield fan in the house, I couldn’t help but grow attached to this cartoon special as well – Garfield causes some mayhem, but also shows his softer side as well! Plus, lest we not forget The Gift That Keeps On Giving!
Ernest Saves Christmas“Oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree … oh Christmas tree, oh Christmas tree…”
So what are your holiday favorites??? 
I spent a good portion of the holidays at my grandparents’ house locked away in the back bedroom, and I absolutely loved every single minute of it!
For Christmastime meant pretty much the one and only time I’d get to see my cousins who lived out of state each year, and for those precious few days when everyone would gather for our family Christmas on my Dad’s side, we strived to make the most of it by playing as many video games as humanly possible. In earlier years, my Dad would pack up my Nintendo to bring and keep us occupied, and later my cousins brought their Super NES, and so while occasional comments about “the kids being anti-social, staying in the bedroom the whole time,” quite the contrary we were having a blast together, squashing Koopas and slashing Foot Soldiers and probably bonding more over those video games than the last generation would ever really understand…
This year for the first time in 11 years, I’m finally traveling home to revisit that family Christmas that I haven’t been able to attend since I moved to Florida, and I’ve got to admit that it makes me a little sad to think that our all-day gaming sessions are one thing among the many that probably won’t be recreated just like I remember. People grow older and family dynamics change, plus my cousins that shared these holiday gaming conventions won’t be able to make it due to other obligations. Sure, it’ll still be nice to chat and catch up with all of my other Aunts and Uncles, and even eat the family bread pudding like the adults do, but I’m not gonna lie that a quick game of Super Mario World would be fun, too!
I haven’t always really been a fan of photo cards … and yet here you see our new one for 2011 fresh off the 1-hour presses from Walmart! 
I think I got spoiled early on because the first couple of years of my “adult life” where I was living on my own, far far away in sunny Florida with a distinct desire to rub it in, I was still actively doing the comic with Lori, so for those years I actually designed custom artwork that she drew for me – I believe one year was a snowman wearing a Hawaiian shirt and the other was just me waving next to a palm tree – and so after we stopped, I guess maybe it seemed a little boring to just use somebody else’s artwork that didn’t have any personal meaning specifically for me.
Plus, who wants to send out a Christmas card with a picture of a single person on it as a not-so-subtle reminder to everyone that you’ve made it another year without finding a girlfriend?!
Of course, fast forward a couple of years and not only did I manage to remedy that little concern, but we also managed to get a puppy this year who was ridiculously difficult to pose for this picture! But that’s really the fun of it – a lot of people you might only see once or twice a year, or even less if you live far away from family like we do, so it’s fun to share a little slice of life where you currently stand to remind everyone that you’re still out there thinking of them. And if you think that’s bad, just wait until we have our first kid because I can guarantee you that I’ll probably become one of those parents who sends out The Family Newsletter to share stories and photos of all the amazing things that my kid has managed to pull out of her own nose over the last year!
Hey, gotta keep making use of that snail mail while we’ve still got it…
Yesterday my wife, her sister, and I spent some time over at Epcot mostly getting absolutely drenched, but also partaking in another holiday activity that I’ve come to enjoy called the Candlelight Processional. It’s a live performance that they run 3x a night throughout the month of December, featuring celebrity narrators that, along with a choir of professional singers, cast members, and high school students as well as a professional orchestra and conductor, tells the story of the birth of Christ in a stellar presentation that even a not-so-religious guy like myself still enjoys quite a bit!
To date this was the 3rd time that we had gone – the other narrators being Kirk Cameron (of Growing Pains fame) and another whom I can’t for the life of me remember, but this year’s was extra special because we got to see none other than Neil Patrick Harris, who has been doing the show for years and is apparently also a big Disney fan! We both love him on How I Met Your Mother, so getting to see him narrate was an extra added twist that made the wet and soggy night all the more fun…
I did one of these last year over on my humor site and it ended up being a lot of fun, so I figured why not take another pass at it and compile a new list with my awesome gift-giving recommendations for 2011?!
Here’s what I was able to come up with…
Jim’s Pancakes – THE BOOK!It started as just a blog where he would post pictures of the awesome pancakes that he made for his 3 year-old daughter, but as with so many other great blogs, you can now own your very own copy in a convenient paper, gift-ready form, too.
LEGO Dino SetsThese are technically on the release schedule for next year, but it looks like you can start to find them now if you’re lucky. Where else are you going to find raptors and even a tyrannosaurus rex made out of Legos?!
The Simpsons: Season 14It seems like DVD releases of The Simpsons have really been at a crawl lately, but you know that the other 13 seasons already on your shelf would just feel lonely if you didn’t add this latest set featuring the likes of Kodos and Kang on the cover to your collection.
Mario Kart K’NexMy sister got me into these for my birthday earlier this year, and I eventually blogged about all of the really cool track pieces that they have out. I still wish that they were officially LEGOs instead of the knock-off K’Nex brand, but they’re still really cool and my wife & I still plan on one day building a track that encircles our entire house!
The Legend of Zelda: Skyward SwordFull disclosure – I haven’t actually played this game yet, but if it’s half as cool as the trailer and Penny Arcade-drawn comic strip would lead us to believe, then it should make for a fine Christmas gift from my perspective!
shirt.woot!I got turned onto this site last month when somebody tipped me off to this awesome pumpkin shirt that has now taken up residence in my closet. The concept is simple – they post a new shirt design every day, but only the most popular ones remain. Best to order as soon as you discover something cool, so as to not miss out on a gem like this as I recently did…
USB Missile LauncherSometimes working in a cubical farm can be war, so as they say, sometimes the best defensive is a laser-guided missile launcher! I’ve always been curious about these USB gadgets and gizmos that ThinkGeek and other similar toy shacks offer … do they actually work or are these missiles purely to see if anyone will call your bluff?
Popcornopolis!Honestly, I just love the name of this place, but their incredible selection of gourmet popcorn flavors is admittedly pretty awesome, too. Jalapeno Cheddar, Cinnamon Toast, Candy Cane Crunch, White Chocolate Pumpkin Spice – the list truly goes on and on until you find yourself in need of a towel to wipe off your keyboard!
Movie Tickets to See The MuppetsLord knows they should’ve already seen it anyways, but if by some freak chance your gift recipient hasn’t yet seen the most delightful movie of 2011, you owe it to them to ensure their attendance by making the tickets their one and only gift from you this year! Also, you might want to go along with them – you know, just to make sure that they’re ok…
My New Book?Oh, wait – it’s actually not quite finished yet, so I guess that won’t really work. Then again, you could always take this time to pick up one of my older books, I suppose…
Boy, this is kind of embarrassing – new book to come very shortly in 2012, though … I promise!
Anyone who knows me knows that Child’s Play is probably my #1 favorite charity of all-time.
And I mean that with all of the sincerity in my heart – not only does it serve the noble deed of making life a little more bearable for sick kids while they’re in the hospital, but there’s also that added perk of proving to society that those who appreciate video games aren’t really the homicidal zombies that politicians and the media all-too-often would make us out to be!
One thing that I really look forward to this time of year is picking out the games and toys off of our nearest hospital’s wishlist to donate. Some day I’d love to be in a position to be the guy who gives an entire Wii or Xbox 360 all by myself, but in the meantime what’s cool is that everybody just does whatever they can and as a result each year millions of dollars in toys are donated to children’s hospitals around the entire world!
Last year for 2010, the final total raised was $2,294,317.
The grand total raised since 2003 has been a mind boggling $10,223,564, and yet we’re already up over $1.5 million here in 2011!
I say we because this is what being part of a community feels like – thousands of complete strangers banding together for the greater good, and frankly, I can’t think of a better time a year for us to do our thing. 
You may have noticed that I’ve been on a little bit of a Muppet kick after seeing the new movie earlier this week, so it seemed awesomely convenient when Disney released today’s clip just in time for me to feature it in today’s holiday post!
Once again, I just can’t reiterate enough how much I enjoyed this movie, so if you want to get but one gift for yourself this holiday season, go and see this movie and I can pretty much guarantee that if you grew up loving the Muppets just as much as I did, it’s the kind of movie that’s bound to put a spring in your step and make the rest of your days even brighter…
It never ceases to amaze me how much content I’ve gotten out of this $2.99 app purchase! Whereas they could easily charge separately for each add-on pack, instead three bucks gets new levels updated for all of the major holidays throughout the year – right now I’ve got an entire year’s worth of seasonal fun from 2011, and now they just released a new holiday edition for 2012. There’s a reason that folks are going gaga over these birds!
My one and only complaint is that the newer levels always seem to be too hard for me! I’ll play the same level for 10 minutes before I finally get frustrated and give up, whereas I played the original levels literally for hours on end. Still, I suppose you can only build so many easy levels before you need to ramp it up a bit, anyways, and again, the updates are free, aren’t they?!
TL;DR – If anyone can tell me how to get past the first level in Wreck the Halls, please have a heart and help a brother out…
This one is kind of fun – the classic Christmas Eve tale, as told by more than two dozen celebrity voices through impressionist Jim Meskimen…
My wife and I are finally going to see The Muppets this evening, so it seemed only fitting that today’s advent post make mention of one of my favorite Christmas movies of all-time…
The whole movie is hilarious, of course, but this medley of holiday songs at the end of the film definitely holds a very special place in my heart! It’s just nice to see all of the Muppets, including the ones from Sesame Street, all singing together like one big, happy family – because really, that’s what Christmas is all about, right?
