Santa arrived Friday evening to kickoff the holiday shopping season at Chambersrburg Mall. Markell DeLoatch, Public Opinion
Snowman lights, glitter-wrapped presents, a Nativity scene and a Christmas pup are among the hundreds of decorations set up in and around the Mack household.
Patty and Larry Mack had their whole house fully decked out for Christmas well before Thanksgiving. They've been doing it for the last five years at their home in Warm Spring Estates in the 1000 block of Warm Spring Road, Hamilton Township, and the effort has won them the competition for best decorations in their neighborhood and even free rent.
Though they decorate with mostly smaller items, the sheer number - which the Macks couldn't estimate - create quite a show, with a few larger pieces adding some flare in key places, like their roof.
It can take two weeks to get all the lights in place. Once it's all done, the Macks light it all up for the first time at once.
READ: Follow these tips to keep your finances in check while holiday shopping
READ: Heckmans say goodbye to Christmas tree farm
The couple usually hosts their family dinners, and some family members see the results of hard work they put in to help place all the decorations.
Patty estimates they have about 100 extension cords on their property, and said they got a new electrical box to handle all the lights. Luckily, they haven't seen their electric bills going up much -- they strategically set them on a timer, leaving them on from dusk until dawn.
"Last year we had a lot of blow-up stuff, but then one windstorm we got pretty much destroyed it," Larry said.
Patty jokes that the decorations are never enough for Larry, who wistfully added they would be doing more if they had more land.
While the Macks may put more into it than the average family, decorating for Christmas is an integral part of the season for many people.
According to Statista, the average family spent $53.55 on Christmas decorations in 2015.
The website NerdWallet found similar results in a report that looked at how much money the average family spent across eight categories of items for the 2014 Christmas season - gifts, decorations, greeting cards, flowers, food, a Christmas tree, four tickets for a holiday movie outing and a bottle of wine. In addition to a poll it conducted on the amount families spend on gifts, it also used data from the National Retail Federation, tthe American Christmas Tree Association and the quarterly price index by the Council for Community and Economic Research.
READ: Here are tips for teaching kids how to be thankful
NerdWallet's report included 264 large cities, small towns and in-between areas across the country, listed from the most money spent to the least. The closest to Franklin County was York County. An average family there was estimated to spend $54.43 each year on decorations, out of $886.57 spent across all categories.
Nearby in the Frederick, Maryland area, people spend a few dollars less on decorations - $49.49 - but about $50 dollars less total.
Not surprisingly, New York City was found to be the most expensive place to celebrate Christmas. The average family there spends $81.27 on decorations alone, and $1,293 on everything to celebrate the season.
The cheapest place to decorate for and celebrate Christmas? McAllen, Texas. There, the average family spends $43.27 on decorations and $717.87 for everything.
It's important to point out that these numbers do not include the Christmas tree. The holiday centerpiece was estimated to cost a high of $66.78 in New York, and a low of $35.55 in McAllen, Texas.
For the Macks, doing their house up big time for Christmas is a way to keep special Christmas memories alive.
"It makes you think of the old times when all the family got together," Patty said.
"It needs to be more like this instead of the way the future is now," Larry said. "Like this is almost in the past."
READ: Don't burn down your house this Christmas
Larry said he went Christmas caroling with his family when he was growing up, into his teen years. Patty said she used to carol with her daughter.
"Everything's different now... I don't see any of that anymore," Larry said.
So the two continue to buy new decorations, "probably too much," Patty laughed, to add to their collection.
"It's the time to be happy, and be thankful and bring family together," Patty said.
Decorating tips
Whether you want to go all out in your Christmas decorating or add a few subtle touches, ideas can be found all around the internet. Try out these:
CountryLiving suggests rustic accents such as evergreen garlands and table runners, and tartan decorations.
HouseBeautiful has a list of vintage trends, such a tinsel, vintage Santa clause decor and popcorn garlands.
HouseBeautiful also has examples of dozens of wreaths to buy or make at home.
Elle Magazine has even more decorating ideas for inside the home, but still suggests sparkle for outside.
If you're looking for a unique trend, Inside and Delish address the trend of Christmas pineapples.
Becky Metrick, 717-262-4762
