One of my favorite things to do this time of year is go see light displays.  Whether it be at the Mormon Temple, or the Sailboat Parade in Annapolis, or just driving around neighborhoods looking for festive houses, it always puts me in the holiday spirit.  My mother-in-law was known for her extravagant displays filled with thousands of lights, musical moving figures, Santa on the roof and her own nativity scene.  People would come from miles around to see her home and she was even on the news for having some of the best decorations in the DC area.  Despite being just a little bit “tacky”, it made us smile every time we turned the corner and saw her house at the holidays.  I will miss that now that she is gone.  But there are many other choices in the area to see light displays.  Click here for a list of some of the best displays.

Also this year, the Rosslyn Business Improvement District is starting off the holiday season with “Light Up Rosslyn” on Thursday, December 3rd at 1100 Wilson Blvd. The ceremony begins at 5:30 pm under the WJLA-TV/ABC-7 JumboTron. At 6:45 p.m. a giant light switch will be turned on to illuminate the Rosslyn rooftops for the holidays. The event includes musical performances and local establishments will be providing refreshments. Rosslyn now use energy-efficient LED bulbs to make the holiday event “green.”   The Rosslyn skyline will be lit up through January 31, 2010.

Also on December 3rd, the National Christmas Tree on the Ellipse will be lit.  If you didn’t win lottery tickets to attend the event, you can view it live at www.thenationaltree.org at 5pm ET on December 3rd.  In addition, public television stations will begin airing the 60-minute lighting ceremony on Friday, December 4th and continue throughout the holiday season.  You can also visit the National Christmas Tree, Santa’s Workshop, the Christmas Pathway of Peace, the National Christmas Tree Railroad, Nativity Scene and Yule Log which will be on display over the next few weeks.