Christmas Song-a-Day Countdown {2016 Edition}

Here we are at December!  (How the heck did that even happen?!)  And it's time for one of my favorite things: my song-a-day countdown to Christmas.  I'll try to keep this post updated each day through the month with each day's pick, so stay tuned.

December 1st: Today I'm thankful (see what I did there?) it's December and I can start my seventh (!!) annual Christmas-song-a-day countdown. (I know this isn't technically a Christmas song perhaps, but just coming off a wonderful thankful month, and the fact that this comes from his Christmas CD, I thought we could extend the gratitude fest another day.)

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December 2nd: Raffi has been around for years and years, but I only discovered him a couple years ago after Cal was born (he has a lot of kid-friendly, fun, peppy songs that we like to listen to in the car).  I listened to his Christmas album last year and loved lots of his renditions of familiar and new-to-me Christmas favorites.  This one is fun.  The harmonica and fiddle combo just makes me want to kick up my heels and dance around the house.  Ha.

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December 3rd: Today I got to play a duet - this duet - with my sister.  We did not sound this good.  Maybe it was the old, ringing piano we were playing on.  Or maybe it was the fact Heather and I only play it once a year with no practice in between?  At any rate, I always look forward to the chances we do get to sit down together at the piano and play.  Maybe someday we can really get it polished and post a video of us playing!

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December 4th: I've been doing this countdown for seven years now and I've never once included The First Noel in my list.  How is that possible?  I absolutely love this version from my faves, the MoTab Choir.  The third verse and big chorus right after just fill my soul!

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December 5th: Our plans to get a Christmas tree on Saturday were foiled due to a sick Callie June.  Plan B is to go this evening.  Hopefully we'll be rockin' around one of our own tonight!  In other news, any ideas for the Ogden area on where to find a good, cheap, real Christmas tree?  (We're not looking for any extra experiences like sleigh rides or reindeer petting or hot cocoa.  Just a good old fashioned tree that doesn't cost an arm and a leg.  Oh, how I wish we could just hike up Tigwon Road again to snag one!)

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December 6th: Something about an accordion accompanying Frosty the Snowman just really works for me and makes me grin.  This is one of my favorite arrangements from those good ol' Reader's Digest records my mom had.  We'd turn them on and listen while we decorated the house early in December.  And again when we'd put up our tree a little bit further into December.  And pretty much every day in December.  Now we've got them converted to CD and we still listen all December long.

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December 7th: Gregg always makes fun of me for having the same Christmas albums as his mom.  But I just say she has good taste.  This one is a must in December.  On repeat.  ;)

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December 8th: Last year I picked a different Jingle Bells rendition done by my faves, the MoTab. This year, here's an older version. Still great. Oh, and the ending is pretty fun. I love Jingle Bells. Maybe because it's one of the first Christmas songs I ever learned (I assume, based on watching Callie learn Christmas songs nowadays - side note: I love how she sings "so much fun it is to ride" instead "oh what fun").

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December 9th: It is a winter wonderland out there today!  6-8 ish fresh inches!  And, bonus, we had our first successful snow outing (just into the yard to do some shoveling) with Sam this morning.  So things are looking up for this winter! Also, Karen Carpenter's voice just makes everything wonderful.

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December 10th: I saw Alan Menken's A Christmas Carol, The Musical put on by Four Seasons Theatre Company today and I really, really loved it. I found myself smiling and clapping and feeling a bit of a lump in my throat throughout the whole production. This was the finale number (not by them, though I think the one I saw may have even been better than this!). I love the story of Scrooge's change of heart and I loved the message of this song. I hope you enjoy!

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December 11th: I really love the oboe and flute parts in this one.  And, crazily enough, I've never included any arrangement of Away in a Manger in all my Christmas song posts!  Time to remedy that today!

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December 12th: I love this one.  The sentiment definitely resonates with me, since growing up our home was always filled with the Christmas spirit.  And now that I'm making my own home, it's where I want to be most of all, with the people I love most of all.  Also, as a bonus, Perry Como's voice is just perfection.

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December 13th: I've tried for years to find Voice Male Christmas songs on YouTube, but often came up blank. (In the past I linked to songs on grooveshark, but that doesn't really exist anymore.) But this year, as of September, there are full Voice Male albums to listen to on YouTube and I've been having fun reminiscing of Christmases past as I listen. I think I like Voice Male so much because they're easy for me to sing along to - like their voices are right in my sing-along range (except for the low guy - not going there!). This is a great little arrangement of God Rest You Merry Gentlemen. And go check out more from them on YouTube if you get a hankerin'.

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December 14th: This is such a cheery song anyway, but I think it's absolutely perfect in a brass quintet like this.

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December 15th: I discovered this one while listening to Mormon Channel's 24/7 Christmas music stream.  (You should definitely check it out! A great mix, I think.)  I love Julie Andrews's crisp, clear, bell-like voice.  Fa-la-la-la-la-la-la!

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December 16th: Another from the classic Christmas records.  The xylophone (or maybe it's a glockenspiel? I don't think it's a marimba) is a fun little touch.

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December 17th: I think Tchaikovsky might be one of my favorite composers and I'm sure it has something to do with The Nutcracker.  I love this music!  I had an old cassette tape recording of it back in the day and used to listen in my room on my karaoke boom box thing.  And tonight Cal and I get to go on a special Grandma Blanchard date to see it (she is a huge lover of ballet in general and is so excited to take Callie to her first one).  I don't know if we'll make it to the Waltz of the Flowers because it may just get too late for my little one, but I thought I'd share this one today because it's one of my favorites.

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December 18th: This is a beautiful rendition.  Happy Sabbath!

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December 19th: Classic.  The song and the voice and the film.

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December 20th: So, maybe this is kinda cheesy (the video surely is!) but I love this song and I love this version by the Osmonds.  My favorite part (and where I can't help but sing along) is the "pinecones and holly berries" descant.

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December 21st: This is a jolly little rendition of a classic from the record collection.  We've been singing some of these simple little Christmas songs like this (and Up on the Housetop and We Wish You a Merry Christmas and Jingle Bells) at Music Makers this month.  Cal is starting to catch on to the words and I catch her singing them to herself while she's busy coloring.  Love that!

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December 22nd: I love these guys and their folksy twist to the holiday classics.

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December 23rd: I read somewhere that The Christmas Song is one of the most recorded Christmas songs ever.  (I don't know if that's true, but check out the list of covers Wikipedia knows about! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Christmas_Song). I'm sure glad Mr. Buble decided to make a version of his own, because I love love love it!

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December 24th: Almost forgot about today's post.  But here it is.  A simply beautiful rendition of one of my all-time favorite Christmas hymns.  Peace on Earth, good will to men!

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December 25th: Merriest Christmas wishes to you all!  Thanks for playing along with me yet again on this little song-a-day countdown.  Here's my very favorite Christmas Hymn (and the one that I use each year on Christmas day because I love it so) this year with a little old-school MoTab.  This one has some nice brass and chimes and organ action going on.  Good stuff.

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