The Ten Best Christmas Movies of All Time Relay

Nostra came up with a great idea to get everyone in the Christmas spirit: a Best Christmas Movies of All Time relay race, where bloggers try to decide which are the best holiday movies. Thanks to Margaret at Cinematic Corner for passing the torch over to me! Let's get started!

Here are the rules:

The list has 10 Christmas movies (in random order) and when the baton is handed over to a new blogger, he or she has to remove one title of the list (with an explanation why) and add one new title. 

Once that is done a new blogger is contacted who will take the baton and run with it, doing the same (you can reinstate a title which has been previously removed). 

As Christmas is in three weeks I want to ask you to publish your entry as quickly as possible to make sure the list changes as much as possible before the 25th of December. Add the logo of this relay race to your post and also add links to those who came before you making it easy for everyone to find all the entries

The bloggers so far: Marked Movies, Keith and the Movies, Flixchatter, Rambling Film, Two Dollar Cinema, Dell on Movies, A Film a Day, Cinematic Corner

2nd Annual Merry Fictional Challenge

The holiday season is here! And, I thought I would pep this place up a bit with a little Christmas cheer from a holiday blog challenge I created last year. Get the list of questions at this post. If you'd like to join in, feel free to comment with a link to your blog in this post below or tweet me! I'd love to see your answers!

Mettel Ray Movie Alphabet Challenge

One of my favorite movie bloggers Mettel Ray just celebrated her seventh blogging anniversary. Reminiscing about how our favorites change over time, she rebooted one of her previous blogathons: My Movie Alphabet, where participants share their choice of favorite actors, movies, directors, etc.

I thought this would be so fun to participate in, but didn't know where my picks would lead. Classic Hollywood has been on my mind lately, but more modern movies and musicals squeezed their way in too. This was so much fun and helped me think out of the box, and I honestly could've kept this going over and over again. See any of your favorites below? What movies or actors would you put on your list? Feel free to give a shout-out in the comments! Be sure to head over to her blog to join!

My Merry Fictional Challenge Answers

Christmas is just around the corner. I created this little holiday meme a while back and thought it was finally time to give it a whirl! If you'd like to join in, feel free to comment with a link to your blog at this post or with your own picks. I'd love to see your answers!

Advent Calendar: Traditions you celebrate during December?
My mom, sister and I make a whole day of shopping together - going to the mall, getting a drink at Starbucks, etc. My family also know that my Christmas day is 1000% reserved for watching A Christmas Story marathon - it's one of my favorite days of the year.

Carols: What's your favorite song(s)?
Christmas Is A Comin' by Bing Crosby, Underneath the Tree by Kelly Clarkson, Jingle Bells by Barbra Streisand - to name a few. I'm a bit of a freak when it comes to holiday music. I can't get enough!

Coal: A naughty character you'd send coal to?
Spencer Monroe - The Walking Dead. Negan kinda took care of that for me but still....

Fireplace: Favorite Christmas movie that melts your heart?
It's A Wonderful Life. It just doesn't feel like Christmas if I don't watch this at least once.

Gingerbread: What's your favorite holiday snack?
Anything peppermint flavored- chocolates, marshmallows, cookies, candy canes.

Hot Cocoa: What's your favorite drink?
BARNIES WHITE CHRISTMAS MOCHA. It's so hard to find but such a good coffee.

Mistletoe: Character you'd like to meet under the mistletoe?
STEVE ROGERS. HELLOOOOOO.

Mittens: A cozy outfit that keeps you warm during winter?
This Christmas has been so hot in Florida (thanks, global warming); it's been the usual shorts and t-shirts I typically wear during the summer. Usually a pair of jammies will keep me warm enough though. I actually can't wait to move and go somewhere where the seasons change. I don't know how I'm going to react when I encounter snow again.

Naughty: Three characters who'd make the Naughty list.
Negan - The Walking Dead, Kilgrave - Jessica Jones, Rumpelstiltskin - Once Upon a Time.

Nice: Three characters who'd make the Nice list.
Eleven - Stranger Things, Regina - Once Upon a Time, and Sasha - The Walking Dead.

North Pole: If you could spend Christmas anywhere, where would you go?
Absolutely - Hogwarts. I'd just love to spend time in the Gryffindor common room by the fireplace or in the Great Hall and watch the tree get decorated.

Presents: A book or movie on your wishlist?
Agent Carter season one. That girl needs some support after everything that happened to her this year.

Rudolph: What's your favorite TV holiday special?
I Love Lucy Christmas special. Lucy, Ricky, Fred and Ethel try to make Christmas magical for little Ricky and end up encountering a little magic of their own. I'm so happy CBS has played it the past few years.

Santa: A character you'd love to exchange presents with? What would you get them?
Rick Grimes - I'd give him a bunch of stuff - canned foods, water bottles, knives - and then I would force him to hide it from Negan.

Scrooge: A villain you'd help see life in a different way?
I don't know how many villains are pass the point of being redeemed. Maybe Kylo Ren?

Snowflake: Something that makes you feel special.
Random conversations with strangers like a barista or cashier. It's nice to just pause and talk to someone and connect, even if it's fleeting.

Tree: What do you decorate your house with for the season?
I like to make a lot of little crafts like paper snowflakes and chain links. It's starting to get a bit fancier with more complicated craft projects though (thanks Pinterest!).

Yuletide: The top 3 things in your life that make you happy?
Trying to think outside of the box of friends and family - soooo... I'll say taking walks early in the morning, dachshunds, and late nights watching movies in bed.

BONUS: Ugly Christmas Sweater: Would you wear a sweater Molly Weasley made you or avoid it like the plague? I'd definitely wear it but it'd have to be on a cooler day here. I'd probably pass out otherwise!

Hope everyone has a wonderful holiday!

Eat, Drink, and Answer Halloween Questions!

I'm a huge nerd for questionaires. On a little old website called LiveJournal, friends could send each other questions and memes about their favorite fandoms and life in general. Mostly these days "ask box" challenges are passed around on tumblr. Grabbing a Halloween-themed ask over on tumblr, I thought it'd be fun to answer some of them here. I tag anyone who wants to do the same thing here or on tumblr, and feel free to leave a comment of your answers!

Bat: If you could transform into any kind of animal, what animal would you be?

As a swimmer, and someone who loves to travel, I'd transform into a bird - probably a duck. A lame choice probably but they are so cute and have the best of both worlds: land, water and people at parks feed them all the time. They have it made!

Black Cat: Are you superstitious? If so, what are you superstitious about?

I'm not superstitious but I'm a little stitious.

Broomstick: If you could travel anywhere in the world where would it be?

London, London, London. I would flee across the pond in a heartbeat to explore the Warner Bros Harry Potter Studio and Platform 9 3/4 at Kings Cross Station. The rain and trains would be more than welcoming after dwelling in Florida heat for ten years and driving two hours anywhere to find something exciting to do.

Candy Corn:What food disgusts you the most?

Not sure why candy corn is used as a food to disgust 'cause I love it. I'm not sure there is a food that disgusts me.

Cauldron: What is your favorite thing to cook?
I'm not too bad at cooking anything pasta. I seem to have an automatic mental timer on getting every kind of noodle the right consistency.

Cobwebs:One place you would never want to get lost in in the dark?

Anywhere alongside a highway or back road. NOPE. No, thanks.

Coffin:Are you claustrophobic?

Yes. It's not an extreme case of claustrophobia, but it kicks in at times. Watching films with isolated locations doesn't scare me as much, but in real life, I have to be aware of where the exits are. I need to know a way out in order to keep my cool. Visiting houses with low ceilings, or at Disney World sometimes you can be herded into a crowded room with little to no queue to the actual line for thirty minutes - I can feel dizzy or trapped.

Demon:What is your worst flaw?

Jumping to conclusions. A writer can bounce all over the place and exaggerate something small  to the inth degree in seconds, usually playing a real-life scenario into something fantastical- at least in my own mind. 

Eerie: One thing that always creeps you out?

Frogs. Frogs, and Frogs. Florida has helped me confront every creepy crawly there is - including surviving a poisonous spider bite. But I will NEVER get over frogs.

Fright: What is your biggest fear?
With phobias, it's frogs and heights. In life, maybe finishing life with things left that I wanted to do or see and was capable of achieving but didn't feel confident enough to do it.

Ghost: If you could be reincarnated, would you come back as another human or an animal? If an animal, what kind?
I don't know if I'd like to come back as anything or anyone else at all. If I did come back, I think I'd want to be myself - a polite ghost....I also think I just figured out what I'm superstitious about - talking about becoming a ghost in my afterlife....

Haunted House: If you could be roommates with anyone of your choice, who would you pick?
Veronica Roth, Emma Watson, and perhaps the 10th Doctor who drops in every once and while to take me on a grand adventure.

Hocus Pocus: What is the most ridiculous thing you've ever heard?

This isn't a sassy answer, but anything human nature is capable of doing to each other. On a lighter note, also somethings that my sister and I have joked with each other because we're pretty freaking crazy together.

Jack-o'-lantern: Do you have any scars? If so, how many?

I have one on my leg but I have no idea where it came from. Woopsies!

Monster: What is your favorite scary movie to watch in the dark?
The Birds. It's my favorite Hitchcock movie and has just the right amount of thrills.

Potion: What is your favorite thing to drink? Alcoholic and non alcoholic?

Java Chip Frappacino - nice blend of coffee, chocolate, and whip cream. Also, Pumpkin Juice and Butterbeer - they're both wonderfully sweet but not overly sugary.

Pumpkin: What is your favorite food around the holidays?
I'm not sure if it's a "holiday" food but mash potatoes poured with butter or gravy. It's such a yummy comfort food.

Spooky: What was your last nightmare about?

Not sure it was a nightmare but I had some wicked dreams of joining Scully and Mulder on solving some of their cases. The dreams were awesome but also creeped me out with encounters of strangers with supernatural powers.

Vampire: Which one are you? Early bird or night owl?
For insomnia's sake, I'm a night owl. I can stay up very late, get up in the same morning on a few hours of sleep and keep going - but that's not very healthy. If I could get on a good schedule (which is my newest goal), I'd be an early bird.

Witch: If could have the power to cast any kind of spell, what kind of spell would you cast?

My first instinct was to pick Accio from Harry Potter, but then I thought that I wouldn't want to get lazy over time from always beckoning things to me. I'd like to go with something doing with flying or bringing light into my life when I needed it, like Lumos or Expecto Patronus.

Zombie: What is one food you always overeat?
Ice cream, ice cream, ice cream. Yep. Just can't have one scoop, gotta have the kitchen sink sundae too.