haul out the holly

Garrett:

This Christmas season has been one of the best.  School is over, Stats class was passed with a B+, and I was able to take work off for the better part of these last two weeks.
It has been fun to hang around with the families, Eric my brother is in from Boston with his family and its always fun to get together and play basketball together as the glissmeyer group.

I think amber might have already posted this but this year, we got our own (real) tree :

it was a beast to put up, but i think we got all the tricks figured out so it wont be so bad next year.

Amber and I have started a new tradition.  On Christmas eve morning, we had friends and family come over for a quick breakfast and had a decent turn out of 10 people.  It was a lot of fun to hang out together and enjoy company before they all went home for the holidays.  Thanks all for coming!!!

We went out to see the lights at famous Christmas Street here in Sugarhouse, I have gone ever since I was a little kid and I will continue to go, its one of the best neighborhoods completely lit up at this time of year.

And we were fully prepared with Hot Chocolate from our brand new Thermos!  (thanks Krista n Ryan)

Now we are just getting ready for bed and Amber has had her nose in this book all day that she got for Christmas.

Its been a nice relaxing holiday and fun with friends and family

Santa stopped by early...

And somehow, I ended up with one of these.

WOW.

It's REALLY cool.  I'm a lucky girl.

Oh Christmas Tree...

We got our first real Christmas tree a few weeks ago. It is beautiful and makes the house smell fresh and piny.  We found our tree at Harmons, and we asked a guy to load it up.  When he saw our little Corolla waiting in front of the store he said, "You're using THAT car?  Well, ok."  The tree made it home just fine.

Neither of us had ever set up a real Christmas tree, so that was also an ordeal.  We couldn't get it to stand up straight without falling over!  Finally we realized we needed to saw off the lower branches, which we did in the middle of our living room.  I don't know if our vacuum cleaner will ever be the same again.

 

Lights and ornaments were easy.  Everyone in Garrett's family gets an ornament every Christmas, which means we have 23 beautiful ornaments on our tree now.  (Plus a few from other various relatives.)  I still need to add mine, but I am so glad that Garrett's mom was thoughtful enough to build up our own little stockpile of ornaments.  Thanks Ann.

(The framing in that last picture is bad.  But that's what happens when the piano takes the picture.)

Carol of the Bells

I've always thought this song is beautiful. However, I don't really like it with the words, I think that's a little too much. So here are my favorite instrumental versions of the Carol of the Bells
The first is by the Trans Siberian Orchestra. I heard this on the radio and thought whoa! That is sweet! It may be too modern for some of you, but you'll have to tell me what you think.


Here's one that my dad showed me several years ago. We laughed pretty hard at this one.


I also like the electric piano version by Barenaked Ladies, but sadly that one isn't on youtube. :(

(And thanks for all the comments, I feel better now.)

Santa Claus is Coming to Town

Amber Writes:
Continuing my Christmas music series (that apparently only my mom cares about) here's Santa Claus is coming to town!  My mom had a music box that I loved to look at when I was little. It had Santa putting presents under a tree, while two kids peeked around the stairs and through the doors to see him. It was cool because the two kids moved. The music that it played was Santa Claus is coming to town, and for some reason I was fascinated with the moving kids. Anyways, that's my story for this song.
My favorite version is by the Jackson five. This is a new addition to my Christmas collection, and it makes me want to dance! You have to admire Michael Jackson's voice. Mariah Carey mimicked their R&B style, but I just think this one is better.


And while we're on the subject of the Jackson Five, here's another Christmas song of theirs that I love.

I love my wife... and Im proud of her

I hope this post doesn't turn into a seriously so blessed thread...

I'm really proud of Amber. She is teaching voice lessons out of our home and is doing great in school in her Major. She is fantastic with video production, editing, and presenting a great news story.

Shes Funny,

She's hard working,

(picture of our study before remodeling)

And she is fun to adventure with.

love ya babe.  Great work this semester.  Keep it up!

Do You Hear What I Hear?

I remember learning this song when I was in first grade.  The teacher used pictures of course, and for the part that says, "with a voice as big as the sea," the teacher put a whale up.  To this day when I sing this song, I want to sing, "with a voice as big as a whale," even though it doesn't even rhyme.  Oh well.  Here are my two favorite arrangements of this song.

The first is by Chaka Khan.  I personally think her voice is phenomenal, but there are some that have heard this song that think she sings too high.  I think when it sounds like that, the high notes are powerful and beautiful.  But this could be because of my interest in singing technique. 



The second is by Destiny's Child, and Beyonce is not the lead singer in this arrangement.  I, again, admire the vocal technique in this arrangement.  I love the harmonies and conflicting melodies that work.



I like the R&B take of both of these arrangements. The thing about Christmas music is that there are only a few songs out there, so they can get old pretty fast. I respect artists that change it up a bit, like these two.

Garrett says:

So i have a friend named Rob. He built his own electronic Organ and is getting better and better each time I see him. This last time I went over to his house, he played this :



congrats rob on the many-a-YouTube hit. Keep it up!

God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen/We Three Kings

To be honest, I never really liked these songs for a long time. Then I heard the Barenaked Ladies version of it (featuring Sarah McLachlin) on the radio. It is groovin!


After hearing this song, I of course had to buy their entire album (Barenaked for the Holidays.) I loved it. It is really bizarre, but I think that's why I enjoyed it so much. Half of the songs are Hanukkah songs, and since I'm not Jewish I don't listen to those. But the rest are pretty funny, and I'll post a few more from that album in this series.


About two Christmases ago I found another excellent version of this song by one of my favorite bands: Rascal Flatts. I think it is tasty.


Which one do you like? I can't decide, I think they are both sweet! Do you have any other versions that you like?

My dad and his quartet also did a version of this song. You'll have to have he or my mom post that version. I think it is also lovely.

Amber's Christmas Music Series!

Every year I search for the best Christmas songs or versions of songs I can find. This year, I'm asking for some help. I'll post a Christmas song and all my favorite versions of it, and you can decide which is your favorite. If you know of one that's even better than the ones I have (unlikely) let me know!

Also, I'll be posting a little tidbit about how Christmas music has made a difference in my life.

I'll start off with my favorite Christmas song of all: Oh Holy Night. When I was a little girl, about four or five years old I remember my dad coming in to play his guitar and sing songs to help me fall asleep. When Christmas time was coming, he always played Oh Holy Night. Now of course, this song has a very special place in my heart. The song itself is absolutely perfect. The music and words show the grandeur and importance of the special night. I can imagine angels singing this song at the time of Christ's birth.
And so...
Here is my favorite version by one of my favorite singers.


Now for everyone who is my age and was a big fan of 'N Sync, you may enjoy this one. These are some TIGHT harmonies


And for the American Idol lovers, here's another A Capella version by Kelly Clarkson. A little too show offy for my taste, but I love the gospel feel to it.


Which is your favorite? Or do you have a better one? Comment comment comment!