Now that Thanksgiving is over, it’s time to get into Christmas. It is completely reasonable now. No arguing. For those of you who waited until after Thanksgiving to start decorating and blasting Christmas music, I’m proud of you. You are officially free to get into the Christmas spirit without valid judgment. For those of you who didn’t, do your thing. Anybody who is judging you must just have their own personal prejudices…against joy.

Anyway, now that it is completely acceptable to get into the spirit of Christmas, here are my favorite Christmas songs. Each of these songs makes my day just a little brighter and gets me so excited for Christmas. I hope they get you excited as well.

“It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” by Perry Como

I don’t feel like I even have to defend this decision, but I will elaborate on why I think that this is one of the best Christmas songs of all time. Let me start off with a question. Is there any particular song that pops into your head when you see the first snowfall of the season? If your answer is yes, I’m almost certain it is this song. You are required to hum the classic chorus of, “It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas” to yourself. Perhaps you even post about it. I know I see many posts of the first snow with this song’s classic lyrics. To be fair, most of these posts are from either millennials or baby boomers which can make the idea of posting with those lyrics seem cringeworthy.

I, however, firmly believe that they simply know what’s up. They’ve lived enough life to realize just how quickly a song can connect you to the nostalgic feeling of Christmas. I believe that this song does just that. Thus, this song makes it on my list for being one of the best Christmas songs. 

“Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” by Brenda Lee

This next song earned its spot in my favorites through exactly one memory, and it’s not even mine. This memory is that of Kevin’s fake party in “Home Alone.” This iconic scene watches Kevin put together a pretend holiday party to scare off a team of burglars. While this party was fake, I remember thinking about just how perfect that song would’ve been for a real Christmas party. The song feels perfectly jazzy and fun. It makes me want to host my own, real Christmas party, just to play that song. Kevin was really onto something. What a convincing song for a good time.

“Feliz Navidad” by José Feliciano

This song was one of my favorite songs growing up. I can so vividly remember dancing to this song in the car with my siblings with our winter jackets on and cheeks red. Feliz Navidad blasting. The perfect moment right there. Truthfully, I don’t think I can pinpoint exactly what makes this song so special. Maybe it’s that it isn’t like many of the other Christmas songs circulating. Maybe it’s the lyrics. Maybe it’s the fast rhythm.

I just know that my siblings and I would request this song from my mom every time we stepped into the car during the holidays. It’s even great outside the car because, outside the car, you can dance to it. This is an immaculate Christmas song for dancing. If you haven’t jammed out to this in your living room or car with your family, get on that. It will not disappoint.

“Silent Night” by Carpenters

This song has been done and redone hundreds of times, but the Carpenters are my favorite singers of this song. This sibling duo mastered every song they created. Their music is just so beautiful and nostalgic. Karen Carpenter’s voice is incredibly smooth and flawless. Unsurprisingly, her voice in this song perfectly captures the song. This song reminds me of candles at Christmas Eve services. It reminds me of hugging my parents before going to sleep on Christmas Eve. It reminds me of peace and warmth. The Carpenters encapsulated these feelings so well in their rendition.

That concludes my list of my favorite Christmas songs. I could go on and on, but these songs are the songs that bring the best Christmas spirit to my heart. They each bring me such nostalgia and remind me of some of my happiest memories. I hope that whoever is reading this can relate to me on at least some of these memories–maybe even dancing in your car to Feliz Navidad. I can’t be the only one. It’s a classic.

If you haven’t made any happy memories with any of these songs yet, maybe it’s time to. Maybe your cat wants to dance to Feliz Navidad, too? Mine doesn’t. She just wants to sit in her Christmas village and judge everyone who walks by. Maybe your cat is nicer, if you have one. I’m rambling, but my point was to make some happy memories. Enjoy the Christmas spirit. It’s officially time.