Christmas carols

The Top Five–Iconic Christmas Songs

Inspired by this year’s music-themed “Christmas School,” today I’m looking at what I consider to be the top five (yes, I know…actually six. I had a Rat Pack tie at the end!), most iconic Christmas songs. When I say iconic, I mean the song and singer together…the type of piece where, when you hear it, you think to yourself “no one else needed to record this song ever, because it’s perfect as it is, and there is no topping it!”

  • Bing Crosby–“White Christmas”–No one does Christmas music like Bing, and maybe it’s just because White Christmas is my favorite Christmas movie, but I think this is the song he does best. I’m immediately transported to a different place and time at those opening notes!
  • Nat King Cole–“The Christmas Song”–Second only to Bing, Nat also excels at Christmas, and while I especially love his Toys for Tots song, we all know that Nat absolutely owns “Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire” (I do also like the rendition they created of him and Natalie Cole singing it together.)
  • Andy Williams–“It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year”–Another iconic voice at Christmastime, Andy has several songs that he does really well, including “Happy Holidays” and “It’s the Holiday Season,” but “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” is my favorite, and so recognizable.
  • Ella Fitzgerald–“Sleigh Ride”–I don’t know if it’s because it’s been used so well in movies (Elf comes to mind), but “Sleigh Ride” is totally Ella Fitzgerald’s song! This is another example of a song I recognize immediately from just the first few notes, because her version was so distinctive.
  • Frank Sinatra–“Christmas Memories”–This is probably the least-known song on the list, and it really captures that sense of nostalgia at Christmastime both in words and music, and Frank sings it with so much emotion, you get the sense he’s really feeling it when he sings “Funny, but comes December, and I remember every Christmas I’ve known.”
  • Dean Martin–“I’ve Got My Love to Keep Me Warm”–Between this and “Baby it’s Cold Outside,” Dean is the king of winter songs, but this one is a little less controversial, so I chose it over the other, even though I like both equally well.

What Christmas songs are iconic to you?

Fröhliche Weihnachten!

We concluded our trip around the world, as well as our two-week Christmas unit, today by learning about Christmas celebrations in Germany.  We listened to a German Christmas carol (“Now Sing We, Now Rejoice”), and talked a little bit about the difference between hymns (more formal), and carols (much more laid back, and very well suited to singing while strolling down the street).

We also turned once again to the Lion Storyteller for one more Christmas story–a legend from Germany, but one that, ironically, takes place in England:  “The First Christmas Tree.”  I had some mixed feelings about this story, because part of it was darker than the other stories we have read, but I felt that the ending was worth it, really driving home the fact that Jesus is the only sacrifice required by God.  And, while Turkey and Bunny did seem a little troubled by part of the story, they didn’t seem scared, so I think we struck a good balance.

Following learning about the custom of decorating Christmas trees, we made a really neat Christmas tree that has an almost stained glass effect when you hang it in a window.  Turkey and Bunny practiced making the small snips with their scissors that the project requires, but in the end, when working on their actual trees, I made the snips for them.  Bunny just doesn’t have the fine motor skills yet to make cuts that small, and while I’m certain Turkey *could* have done it, once he saw me making specific shapes in Bunny’s tree, he wanted me to do his, too.  They did have a great time with color selection and gluing, and some trimming (mostly on Turkey’s part–he’s way better with scissors than his sister is!).

They also had a tree decorating coloring sheet in their Christmas Around the World coloring books, and a picture of Kris Kringle in their Holiday Traditions coloring books.  We may not “do” Santa here, but I do think it is interesting for them to learn about the way other cultures view the legend of St. Nicholas.

The highlight of the day (other than the tree project), was learning about “Christkindlmarkts.”  That is my favorite thing about Christmas in Germany, and I really hope to attend the Nuremberg market someday.  I have been to the Chicago Christkindlmarket, and from what I can tell, it’s a pretty good replica.  It was also my very favorite Christmas tradition when I lived up in the Chicago area (schnitzel sandwich and hot spiced cider, anyone?), and I can’t wait to take the children there in a few years when they’re older.  I’ll confess to actually having had dreams about it, I enjoyed it so well, and miss it so much.

After I explained to them what a Christmas market is, we watched an episode of “The Seasoned Traveler” from PBS.  I saw this show a few years ago, and really enjoyed it, so I was excited to find this year that’s it’s available on DVD.  I don’t know how I never caught before that the show is geared toward seniors who like to travel (I know, the title should have tipped me off, but I really thought “seasoned” just referred to people who were experienced travelers!), but I don’t think that really matters, and Turkey and Bunny loved seeing the different markets in Germany, as well as other places in Europe.  They were quite surprised that those were actual places, especially the Nuremberg market, with a children’s area, complete with carousel and ferris wheel, and I think they really want to go to a Christmas market now!

I wish I could find the Christkindlmarkt video that we watched every year in my German class in high school.  I have no idea what it was called, but it was really cool, and told a story about a little German girl, while she went exploring through the market (I think maybe in Cologne?).  I know Turkey and Bunny would enjoy that, since it focuses on a child, but try as I might, I can’t even find out what it’s called, much less if I can get a copy anywhere.  I think that’s the only thing that would have made our Germany exploration better, though–we had a great time with Christmas around the world, and Christmas school!

Fröhliche Weihnachten and Merry Christmas!