Derrolyn Anderson

When we first moved into our house, our new neighbors sidled up and asked us : "Sooo... Do you like to put up Christmas decorations?"

I was all, "Yeah, sure." Little did I know I'd moved to Crazy Christmasland.

The light-show probably peaked about eight years ago, and we've all been cutting back a bit now that our kids are grown. People get out of their cars to tell us that they've been stopping by for over a decade, and that coming to see our lights has become a family tradition, so that keeps us going.

Plus, we all really DO have fun with it, and throw a yearly street decorating party with a bonfire and lots of Christmas cheer of the wine country variety. Hopefully we'll manage to keep it going for a good while longer :)

This house is directly across from me:

Trust me, my phone's camera doesn't do this justice! He's got the cool retro Santa cracking a whip on the roof and animated deer and snowmen. It's awesome :)

The folks on either side of me really go for it too.

So in the spirit of neighborhood camaraderie, I put my painting skills to work and did some plywood cutouts, starting with the eight foot "Coca Cola" style Santa :

Then I added a gingerbread

house (Nutcrackers in background) :

A lion & lamb:

A penguin skating rink that doesn't photograph too well :

And my personal favorite, Raphael's angels :

I was super late getting them up, but considering the year I've had, it's a miracle I got it done at all. Now I can just sit back and watch the fun.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to everyone!