I’m decorating for Christmas on November 1, and here’s why

Everyone who knows me knows that I am completely and totally obsessed with Christmas. During the final weeks of every year, you’ll find me rocking my reindeer antlers, listening to Kelly Clarkson’s Underneath the Tree on repeat, and ducking into department stores after work to go shopping. I truly and completely believe that the holidays are, in fact, the most wonderful time of the year. And this year, I’m just leaning into my love for all things merry and bright. I’m going to put away my cobweb bowls, bat lights, and wooden jack-o’-lantern and swap them for Christmas lights, stuffed reindeer, and stockings the very second the clock strikes midnight on November 1.

My reasons for decking the halls before the leaves have finished falling are twofold. First, I truly love the holiday season and I want it to last as long as possible. Christmas music, twinkling lights, and Claymation television specials just make me feel jolly as heck. During a time of the year when the sun sets before I even leave work, I’m going to take every little bit of happiness that I can get, OK?

Secondly, I typically decorate for Christmas the weekend after Thanksgiving. It’s a good compromise between my love of the holidays and being practical. However, I’m going on vacation the first week of December this year. This not only means I’ll have seven fewer days in December to enjoy my Christmas-ified home, but it also means that my tree will be up, mostly unattended, while a cat who finds an evergreen to be his favorite toy prowls around my apartment. Yeah, that won’t end well.

So instead, I’m going to put up all of my other Christmas decorations this week and I’ll wait to trim my tree until mid-December. That way, I can enjoy a winter wonderland in my living room for as long as possible. And, you know, so many Christmas decorations are good all winter long anyway.

Carolyn Menyes is the entertain and holidays editor at The Daily Meal. She identifies with the Snow Miser. Follow her on Twitter and Instagram.