Ten BEST Holiday Songs

OK, yesterday I listed my 10 least favorite holiday songs . . . now it's time for my all-time favorite melodies.  These are the tunes that make my Christmas year after year.  How many are on your list too?

10.  Another Old Lang Syne by Dan Fogleberg:  Who can't relate to this misty-eyed tale of bumping into a old flame on Christmas Eve? 

9.  Christmas Island by Jimmy Buffet: I find myself humming this non-traditional holiday tune from Thanksgiving to Christmas Eve.  And while I prefer a white Christmas, I'd love to hang out with Jimmy on Christmas Island one of these days.

8.  Chipmunk Song: All I want is a hula-hoop too, Alvin.

7.  Hardrock, Coco and Joe/Suzy Snowflake/Frosty the Snowman:  For any kid growing up in the Chicagoland area in the 19060 and 70s, you couldn't escape these black&white treasures that would air on Ray Raynor or Family Classics.  If you hear a giggle as he turns to go, it's Coco, a snowball, and Joe!  Brilliant low-tech videos!

6.  Anything by Harry Connick Jr:  His classic crooning and jazzy undertones make any holiday song swing.  Sorry Michael Buble, you've got nothin on Harry.

5. Christmas Song by Nat King Cole:  Smooth, warm and absolutely beautiful.  Everything that the holidays represent and more.

4. Santa Claus is Coming to Town by Bruce Springsteen:  OK, I admit, I'm a die-hard Bruuuuce fan and feel he can do no wrong.  But this version of this holiday classic is truly classic Bruce.  It made it cool for other rock-n-rollers to do their own holiday tunes, but no one does it better than  the Boss.

3.  It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year by Andy Williams: Who can't sway and twirl and smile whenever this song is played. Even my sons had to dance whenever I put this song on years ago (although they would never admit that they did -- too bad I have it on video.  Ha!)  Andy does it like no other! 

2.  Anything from Charlie Brown Christmas by Vince Guaraldi:  This soundtrack is rich with memorable, treasured renditions of holiday classics. I still can't resist doing the Peanuts' dance during "Linus & Lucy" -- and have taught it to my daughter to keep the tradition alive.

And my FAVORITE holiday song is . . .

1. All I Want for Christmas is You by Mariah Carey:  Emily and I break out in instantaneous song and dance whenever this hits the airwaves.  It's a perfect Christmas rock ballad that will live on for a long time, thanks to it's prominence in one of my favorite holiday movies, Love Actually.

Honorable Mentions: These songs are also my favorites but just didn't make the top 10.

• White Christmas by Bing Crosby as well as the version by the Drifters
• This Christmas by Wham
• Jingle Bell Rock by Hall & Oats
• Sleigh Ride by Leroy Anderson
• Christmas Waltz by Frank Sinatra
• Merry Christmas Baby by the Carpenters

10 Worst Holiday Songs EVER!

OK, I admit it.  I'm a TOTAL holiday music junkie that tunes into WLIT-FM (Chicago) on the first day they start playing Jingle Bell Rock all the way through Christmas day. . . and have done so as long as they've been broadcasting wall-to-wall holiday music.  So as a self-proclaimed expert, I feel it is my job to inform the world which holiday songs rock, and which ones should roll away to the island of Misfit Toys.  Today, is my review of the 10 WORST holiday songs on the radio.  Trust me people, avoid these at all cost!

10. Mannheim Steamroller:  What is the appeal of this techno-babble called music?  It sounds cold, harsh and boring -- everything that Christmas is not! Seriously.

9. Anything by Diana Ross:  You've got the pipes, honey, but not the sincerity.  I'm not feeling the love in any of your holiday songs, so stick to Motown, please.

8. Anything by Johnnie Mathis:  Bland, contrived and just plain bad.  Wasn't he a punchline in the 70's -- why are we still listening to him today?

7.  Wonderful Christmastime by Paul McCartney: Sir Paul -- what the hell happened here?  Were you going through a bad patch with Linda when you composed this loser?  Considering I've been in love with you since I was 6 years old when I demanded, and got, the Beatles Colorform play kit and lunch box for Christmas, I'll let this slide.  But please, no more attempts at Christmas kitsch!

6.  Christmas Shoes by Newsong:  OK, it's a touching song, mind you.  But who the hell wants to cry every time they hear about momma looking pretty when she meets Jesus tonight? Yes, I admit that I do. It's Christmas, not Cry-fest. 

5.  I Saw Mommy Kissing Santa Claus by the Jackson Five:  OK, does anyone else think it's creepy whenever Michael says "I'm gonna tell my dad!"? Knowing what we know now, this song should seriously be taken off the air.

4. I Want To See Christmas Through Your Eyes by Gloria Estefan:  Sorry Gloria, you can surely do the conga but I just don't care to see Christmas through your or your child's eyes.

3. Any remix with a dead person: While novel, it's just wrong to have living people weasel their way onto a dead person's hit and make it into a "new" duet.  Yes, I'm talking to you Natalie Cole and Cyndi Lauper!

2. Dominick the Donkey:  Where the hell did this song come from?  I never heard it as a child and I sure as heck don't want to jiggidy-jigg (hee-haw hee-haw) as an adult. 

And the winner of the WORST holiday song ever is . . .

1) I Want a Hippopotamus For Christmas:  All I want is ear plugs and a shot gun when I hear this one!  Bah humbug.

Tomorrow (or whenever I can get around to it) I'll post my top 10 FAVORITE holiday songs.  In the meantime -- do you agree or disagree with my choices?  Any more songs to add that I may have forgotten?  Chime in please.

Midnight Madness

This Thursday night (or should I say Friday morning) I joined the legions of Twihards in celebrating the debut of New Moon, the long awaited sequel to the 2008 blockbuster, Twilight.  Being a  self-proclaimed "cool mom" I hosted a pre-movie movie party complete with vampire-worthy cupcakes, red apples and of course, lots of high-energy beverages so that we could stay awake for the 12:03 a.m. showing of the movie.  Take note of the cupcakes as they hold special significance for the evening. How?  Well . . .

• They were red velvet cupcakes (red for vampires and velvet for Edward's velvety smooth voice)
• White frosting to depict the pale pallor of the Cullen family's complexion
• Silver cupcake holders that sparkle, just like Edward in the sunshine
• Fork decorations to pay homage to the town in which the Twilight saga takes place, and
• Photos of Edward and Jacob (natch) that are placed in the fork prongs to depict vampire fangs.

I wish I could take credit for all this creativity, but alas, I saw this on theTwi -Crack Addict blog.

The evening was fun, we all stayed awake through the pre-party AND movie, and no one went home disappointed.  All in all, a great late night out. . . probably not to be copied until June 29/30 for Eclipse.

Twilight Addicts: This Is Your Brain On RPattz - Tonic

Twilight Addicts: This Is Your Brain On RPattz - Tonic

This explains it all! I knew I wasn't a freak.

Can't wait for the Twilight Double Header tonight. First, my group of self-proclaimed "cool moms" will start off the evening watching Twilight at my house, then progress to Keresotes 16 for the midnight show. I'll try to take pix of the party to share. Only about 12 more hours to go-- FINALLY!

Guilty Pleasures

I'm borrowing the title of another blog post because it accurately depicts my post today:  the guilty pleasure of the TWILIGHT series.

Never have I experienced such a universal obsession with a piece of literature as I have with this book series. (OK, I use the term "literature" loosely, but you know what I mean.)  No matter where I go, I find women of all ages -- from 12 to 90 -- under the "Twilight" spell.  All I have to do is flash the cover of any one of the four books from the series and I get a smile of recognition   from total strangers confirming that they are part of the same cult.  We all love it and have no intention of leaving it!

While it's interesting that one of the main characters is a "good" vampire and another is a "good" werewolf, that's not what has sucked me in.  It's the compelling love story between Bella and Edward that keeps me turning the pages way past midnight.  The first time I read the series, I devoured every page quickly and obsessively, hungry to read more about the perfect man and the woman he loved.  It only took 20 days to read all four novels -- quite an accomplishment for someone who typically falls asleep after reading three pages of anything.  This time around it's different.  Now that I'm re-reading the books in preparation for the debut of New Moon, I'm taking it much slower in order to savour every word, stroke of the cheek, and breathless kiss.  Sigh.  I admit it -- I'm in love with these books.

So it is with great anticipation that I wait for the debut of New Moon in 7 days, 11 hours and 20-some minutes.  To properly prepare for the movie, all the other "cool moms" in my neighborhood are gathering at my house for a "Twilight Double Header" -- watching Twilight on DVD at my house and then going to the theater for the midnight show.  Can't think of a better way to spend an evening.

Thank you Stephenie Meyer for giving me and millions of other women the gift of Edward, Jacob and Bella.  Now, what can we do to convince you to finish "Midnight Sun?"

Surviving College: A Parent's Guide

If you're like me, you've recently experienced one of the most difficult and rewarding experiences of your life -- sending a child away to college.  All those years of saying "I can't wait until he is old enough to . . . " have flown by in a blink of an eye and you're trying to take it all back.  But it's too late -- they're grown up and gone, and you're left wondering if those 18 years of parenting worked.  Are they ready for the "real" world?

Fortunately, my heart is warm knowing that my son is in the right place on many different levels; socially, geographically, academically and mentally.  He's blossomed into a content, conscientious young man.  And I couldn't be prouder.

While I have no fool-proof parenting lesson plan to suggest, I do believe his strength has come from a caring, but not indulgent, upbringing.  While many of his friends were out buying the latest sports jersey or player-of-the-moment athletic shoe, he was learning patience and frugality by waiting for the same shirt/shoe/product to go on sale before paying for half with his own money.  While his buddies spent the weekends in front of the XBox, he was finishing his chores first. Even though we live in the land of lawn services and cleaning ladies, my husband and I wanted to teach all our kids that those amenities are the benefits of hard work -- and not an entitlement.  Yes, in other words, we were the "meanest parents that ever lived," and I'm proud of it.

This job of parenting doesn't end after 18 years, so there's still lots more for me to learn.  Plus, I still have two more kids to get thru college, so my story is long from being told.  Thankfully the dividends of our hard work are paid in tiny portions every day.

Oh God, not my wine!

Today is BLOG ACTION DAY and the topic is one close to my heart, Climate Change.  Always an advocate for recycling and cutting down my personal and family's waste, this seemed like a natural subject for me to expound on.  When researching the subject, I was astounded by the many ways that climate change is effecting our planet and lives.

We all joke about "global warming," especially when the Chicagoland area has been experiencing one of it's coolest years in years. (There was barely a summer and fall has quickly given way to winter-like temperatures.  Where's the warming part of global warming?)  But long-term, there will be drastic changes to the world as we know it if we don't take action soon.

Even if you don't care about saving the polar bears and grey whales, climate change will change your life and mine in ways you never imagined.  Good God, light dry WINES in California and France -- like one of my  favorites, Pinot Noir -- will no longer be the same due to the warmer temperatures effect on the grapes.  GUACAMOLE, NUTS, and FRENCH FRIES will all be harder to grow/produce due to the higher temperatures. BASEBALL won't have ash bats anymore thanks to a combination of killer beetles and higher temps.  Ski VACATIONS, snorkeling and visiting remote island outposts will also be things of the past.  This is serious people!

What can each of us do to help?  Plenty. Walk or ride your bike more and drive less; cut down on long-distance travel (Can you handle your business with a conference call instead of a face-to-face meeting?); consume less and be more efficient (that includes our appliances too); eat local whenever possible; switch out a few lightbulb in your home to compact flourescents; save a tree and use less paper. 

This is just the tip of the proverbial iceberg of what we can each do to help save the planet for our children and grandchildren.  Or if not for them, then for wine-lovers like me!

Toast to a New Beginning

Thanks for joining me on my journey to celebrate the middle portion of our lives. The kids are older, opening a window to more time to spend on ourselves. But if you're anything like me, you may have forgotten what a hobby or an interest is. The past 10-20 years have been dedicated to the others around you. But it's time to turn some of the focus back on ourselves and our own health and well being.

What I'd like to do with Hot Flashes 4 Cool Chicks is to create a fun, no-holds-barred dialogue about what this stage of our lives is really like and how we can make it better. I encourage all who read this to throw in your two cents (or more) -- we're all in this together, you know. (Sorry, the Disney influence is still rather strong in my brain. . .I just had visions of Troy Bolton and the Wildcats.)

Thanks