Even during Christmas, we still are house proud and not only do we want to look good but we also want our decorations to keep up with the neighbors. This can be a hard task because so much time and money is spent on outdoor Christmas lighting and holiday decorations. I was surprised to find out that many of my neighbors start planning their lighted outdoor Christmas decorations months before Christmas time. The days are gone when house decorating was as simple as running a string of lights along the roof and making a snowman in the front yard. Nowadays, if you don't spend weeks decorating, it looks like you have put in almost no effort at all and don't care!

If you are short on time there are some great shortcuts to Christmas decorating. The best one, in my opinion, is using animated outdoor Christmas decorations. I first discovered them a few years ago when one of my friends was putting up his Christmas light display. I was surprised to see him covering his lawn with silhouettes made of stiff wire. When I asked him about it, he told me to wait and see. He was bursting with pride to show off the work that he had put in to the animated outdoor Christmas decorations, and wanted to show me the finished display instead of explaining it to me.

The display was so gorgeous that it was really worth the wait! The effect was absolutely stunning. The animated outdoor Christmas decoration was actually a moving animation of Santa Claus driving his reindeer. The reindeer would move across the lawn, Santa raising his whip to spur them into action as they leapt dramatically on. It was classic and high-tech at the same time. It was, in short, just what I was looking for in my Christmas decor.

Animated outdoor Christmas decorations come in many different styles. I prefer the look of animated wire, but some people like to go a lot further than that. I have a neighbor who actually has an electric powered carousel with reindeer moving around inside of it. It is not something that you can ride, of course, but it does make quite an impression. The whole thing flashes and glows with red and green lights and can even be programmed to play Christmas carols. Only your imagination can hold you back when it comes to designing animated outdoor Christmas decorations.

I love the spirit of Christmas. I look forward to seeing all the sights that make up the magic of the season for me. Nothing says that Christmas is coming to me better than when I see the Christmas lights house. These displays are usually excellent and I love driving at night with my family to check out the Christmas lights house. Usually there will be holiday music playing and a beautiful illuminated display. As soon as I see these things I really know that Santa is on his way. It always amazes me how much the people who decorate their Christmas lights house give joy to people like me who are strangers. In our area there is always a competition in the paper for the best Christmas lights house. People get to drive around and admire the decorations and then vote on their favourite. I can't remember what the prize is, I don't think people enter for the money, more for the joy of decorating their house with beautiful lights for all to admire.