11 Signs You're Too Obsessed With Christmas
It's the most wonderful time of the year. We bake frosted sugar cookies, exchange gifts with friends and family (even those relatives that we usually hate), and believe in the magic of the season. When we were little kids, we found the idea of going to bed on Christmas Eve absolutely painful and tossed and turned all night, wondering if Santa had made his journey down the chimney yet (whether or not our house even had a chimney). When we get older, we still love December 25th - who doesn't? - but it's usually on a more mature, less excitable level. We still have lives, after all, and we can't exactly take weeks upon weeks off work to plan for the holidays. But not you. You are so full of holiday spirit it's as if you never really grew up at all. Here are 11 signs you're too obsessed with Christmas.
11 Christmas Begins in October
We generally consider the holiday season to be from mid-November until early January, since November is when American Thanksgiving is and the holidays aren't officially over until New Year's Day. But you go one step further and you're already planning Christmas before Halloween has even started. In fact, you'd rather skip that candy and costume filled holiday in favor of all things merry and bright. You start humming carols as you walk around your office and asking coworkers what their holiday plans are, and you get a lot of confused looks. People tell you to chill out but you think they just don't have enough Christmas spirit.
10 You go Overboard With Decorations
It's one thing to have a Christmas tree in your house. You would be pretty weird if you didn't have one. But you go way beyond that. You drape garlands around your staircases, have a blow-up Santa and his sleigh and reindeer on your front lawn, and even put antlers on each side of your car. When night falls, your house is so lit up it's absolutely blinding. You're totally the kind of person who keeps their Christmas lights up past January - you still haven't taken them down when the calendar changes to March. Basically, your neighbors hate you.
9 You Visit the Christmas Market Daily
Most cities and towns have Christmas markets - adorable markets that sell homemade crafts and treats. It's the best place to get some holiday cheer if you haven't gotten in the mood yet, and to find gifts for the trickiest people on your list to buy for (like your aunt who knits for every family member). In Toronto the Distillery District's Christmas Market is pretty popular. You're kind of a crazy person though - not only have you visited your city's local Christmas market, but you've gone on a daily basis since it first opened. You might have even been standing there super early, waiting for the stalls to open.
8 You Know the Hallmark Movies by Heart
Sure, we all love Elf and Home Alone, in a nostalgic way. These sweet family movies remind us of our childhoods. But you're not rewatching your old favorites, you're watching Hallmark Christmas movies every single night. These made-for-TV movies are always cheesy and usually all about finding love. You've seen these films so many times you could practically recite them by heart. Once you start recognizing storylines - a career woman travels back in time to rectify things with her high school sweetheart, a career woman wakes up in an alternative world where she has a family, etc. - you know you're a true Christmas addict.
7 You're on a Major Sugar Rush 24/7
'Tis the season for sugar cookies. If you don't bake and decorate cookies, shaping them into little trees or snowmen at least once in December, you're not doing Christmas right. You go way beyond that, though. A once-a-holiday baking session is amateur hour. You're baking every day, making everything from shortbread to gingerbread to chocolate cake (hey, a little chocolate never hurt anyone). You're eating your delicious creations too, of course, and as a result spend the month on a sugar high every single day. You're hyper, your hands are starting to shake, but no, you won't stop. You have Jamie Oliver's gluten-free pudding to make.
6 Hot Chocolate has Replaced Coffee
We all love hot chocolate but it's usually a special holiday treat rather than an everyday occurrence. We have our coffee addictions to deal with. You know you're way too obsessed with Christmas when you've replaced your morning Starbucks with hot chocolate for the entire month of December. Not only that, but your mug always has whipped cream, nutmeg, and cinnamon. You can't imagine drinking it plain. If you must drink this super sweet hot beverage, at least make your own - a nutritionist suggests adding raw cacao powder instead of the typical cocoa powder for a healthier twist.
5 You do Your Shopping in August
You laugh when people ask you whether you've gotten your Christmas shopping done yet. It's a week before Christmas, of course you have. In fact, you bought all your presents back in the summertime. If anyone questions you, you just shrug and say it's great to avoid the crazy crowds and lines. If you're totally honest, though, you're just way too excited about buying gifts and can't possibly wait until December. Of course, you still buy a few things during the holiday season, because you can't help yourself. So yeah, you end up a bit broke by New Year's Eve.
4 You Blast Carols at Work
If you've replaced your usual Taylor Swift tunes with every rendition of “Jingle All the Way”, you're probably driving your coworkers crazy. And you're probably a little too obsessed with this time of year. Sure, we all like a Christmas carol every now and then, but we don't want to listen to them on a constant loop while we're trying to get some work done. You don't know why people wouldn't want to listen to these songs, though - you live for this. You would listen to them year-round if it wasn't considered so weird. Of course you sing along, and you even sing at the top of your lungs. If your boss has told you to keep it down, you're definitely a Christmas addict.
3 You're Never in a bad Mood
While Christmas is fun and all, it's always a super stressful time for most people. The season gets most of us down because we're waiting in extremely long lines while buying our gifts, fighting with our relatives over holiday plans, and dealing with flight delays if we're traveling. But this doesn't describe you at all. You're never in a bad mood during the season - in fact, you've got a huge grin plastered on your face the entire time. You can't imagine why anyone thinks this is a stressful time of year. Why can't people just be jolly?
2 You Never Skip a Tradition
Each family does their own thing - a fancy turkey dinner complete with cranberry sauce and gravy, or Chinese take-out, or something completely different. Not you. You absolutely insist on following every single Christmas tradition that most people would associate with the season. You make your family eggnog and mulled wine on Christmas Eve. You get everyone to open one present. You string mistletoe and try to get your crush to plant one on you (it didn't work but there's always next year). You set up a Secret Santa at work and actually dress up as Santa. You're having way too much fun.
1 You're Already Planning for Next Year
Hey, it may be December 26th, and everyone is rushing to get to the mall before it opens to snag the best Boxing Day deals. You don't care about that, though. You're already making plans for next year's Christmas. It's going to the best one yet. Sure, this year was fun and full of time with your loved ones, but perfection can always be improved upon. Maybe next year you'll learn to make the turkey and add about 100 cookie recipes to your usual baking. It's going to be pretty hard for you to wait. But that's okay, you're off to watch another Hallmark movie.
