Hey Howdy Hey Tappers!
So Christmas is my favorite holiday/time of the year (in case you didn’t already know). I’m affectionately known in my family as a Griswold because I tend to get a little carried away with the Christmas lights….maybe a little more than Clark….if you could believe anyone gets more carried away than Clark.
But of course, today is November 21st and we’re still more than a month away from Christmas. Heck, Thanksgiving is still two days away. So when is it too early to turn on your Christmas Lights? 
Here in America, for many, it’s a faux pas to turn on your lights prior to Thanksgiving. And in some cases, people won’t even turn their lights on until well into December. (a few exceptions for people who won’t turn them on until Christmas Eve) But that’s real life, and everyone can find a justification for waiting (or not waiting) to turn on their lights.
But what about in our Pocket-Sized Springfields? What’s ok and what’s not ok when it comes to turning on your lights? Is it perfectly acceptable to turn on your lights before Thanksgiving? Heck is it perfectly acceptable to turn your lights on in October? Or are you like Wookiee and just never turn them off?
If you’ve been playing TSTO for as long as I have, 5 years, this will be your 6th Christmas in Springfield. In that time, if you’re like me, you’ve accumulated a LOT of Christmas decorations and LIGHTS! And hopefully, that handy light plunger to toggle them on and off easily…
Side Bar….who remembers having to go around town and turn on each set of lights individually? Those were the days, huh?
So when do you turn them on? Do you wait for December 1st? For Thanksgiving to be over? Or Snow on the Ground? (because let’s face it…nothing looks as good as Springfield covered in snow with Christmas lights on)
Or are you like me and already have your lights on in town? I turned the lights in my pocket-sized Springfield on over a week ago. Why?
Because who doesn’t love to see the festive lights all over town?
The Candy Cane Cooling Towers looking so dapper in red and white…
Or the Wiggum house with the Santa falling over….Ralphie must’ve decorated…
The VanHouten’s with their Funzos swaying in the cool air…
The Mansion of Solid Gold…how Lampwick’s house has that little extra twinkle from the Christmas lights…
How cute the Purple House looks with Santa and his Reindeer up on the roof…
How Classic and simple the First Church of Springfield Looks decked out in Angels and baby Jesus…
Don’t mind how Mr. Costington is too big to fit through the doors…
How Sanjay’s House and Apu’s Apartment both look so simple, yet so elegant with their garland windows and few lights..
Only appropriate the Helen Lovejoy would be passing by…to judge.
Can’t help but love the Santa hat touch on Frink’s Lab…and even Willie’s got his shack decked out..
Town Hall has it’s tree up already too…
Even Candy Kevin can’t help but take a stroll through the lights…
And of course, who doesn’t love watching Homer and Flanders duke it out for the tackiest Christmas house on the block?!
Springfield is AWESOME for the holidays! Of course it’s always better with snow So why not turn your lights on early and get into the holiday spirit?
I guarantee no one will groan at you for it, like they will if you put your Christmas tree up this early.
This time of the year can get stressful for many. There’s always one more present to buy, one more gift to wrap, one more card to send, one more trip to the grocery store…always one more. But in our Pocket-Sized Springfields, stress isn’t supposed to get us. It’s supposed to be a stress-free zone.
So turn on your lights and enjoy them! Enjoy strolling around town looking at the details of each decorated house. And enjoy it before the next event hits. Because soon the snow will be falling, the snowpeople will refreeze and then it’ll be too chaotic to enjoy the details! And let’s all hope that EA doesn’t screw it all up this year!
When will you be turning your lights on? Feel free to share some of your holiday designs in the comments below.
This is my first Christmas playing TSTO (I started this Feb) and I am SO freaking excited. Christmas is my favorite holiday, and I’m so excited that there’s gonna be snow in Springfield!!! I saved up a ton of donuts, and I really really hope the Christmas event is awesome with tons of goodies. If anyone wants to add me as a friend, please do, I’d love to see all your Christmas decorations!! I’m currently rebuilding my Springfield (again, hehe) but it looks lovely so far. 🙂
I just hope they remember the REASON for the SEASON this year
When it was just myself and the kids, tree and lights went up the day after Thanksgiving. My husband however was used to leaving his up year round. Now it all goes up on Halloween as we don’t celebrate that day. But since it goes up so early all of it comes down the day after Christmas. That way he is happy and so am I. As to my town my lights went on while waiting for the removal update to hit now I’m waiting for the snow.
No snow no lights , I don’t like lights without snow , it doesn’t look a bit like Christmas !! I want snow lols but i live in the UK and it usually comes along mixed in with rain , and then we get told we’ve had a white Christmas 😱😱😱
I will light up my Springfield on Thanks Givings day, plus download my favorite Christmas phone screen saver. That is the day I shift gears and go into holiday mode. Anything before that feels too commercialized.
Game wise the lights went on in my three towns last week. I restructured the last two events “stuff” over the weekend so all towns have mega room! Hauled out some Christmas stuff in one town today…getting ready to design.
In real life all is done Christmas wise indoors. Last few years we start around Rememberence Day,November 11. This year we are getting our outdoor lights done professionally because my husband can no longer do it…sad he retired and now has very poor health. We love the season,decorate early,and actually take down and clean so New Year’s Eve is a fresh start! Outside lights always stay on until January 7th,Ukrainian Christmas! Cheers 🎄🇨🇦🎄
This is my second Christmas play TSTO.
I really love this game. But lights??? I have none. Where do I get them?
I’ve been playing awhile so I don’t really remember how I got all of my lights but I’m fairly certain that some were prizes from previous events and others had to be purchased with donuts. This years event will hopefully feature some new lights.
This year I turned them on at Halloween to give them a Halloween decoration look.
Some of the buildings I have them on all year long .
Wookiee Rules .
🚫 No Tokens 🚫
“Who will think of the children ? ”
🎬🎥🐒 . See ya bye . 👽
One of the reasons I love this community and hang out on this forum is because of the insights it provides into northern hemisphere, and US in particular, cultures. Of course you’re more to me than anthropological studies, but it’s a bonus.
I’m in New Zealand and Christmas is summer time. We don’t have thanksgiving and most neighbourhoods don’t go in for the lights (those that do, go hard out and become destinations). Some department stores have had Christmas sections since October but there’s no real advertising yet. However Santa parades start this weekend, probably because the same floats appear in each city so they have to be spread out – they’re the closest we have to thanksgiving parades with all the floats, civic groups, marching bands, clowns etc.
On a personal level, I’ll be putting my tree up on the second weekend of December, because that’s what we did growing up.
So to answer Alissa’s question, I’ll probably switch on the lights in mid December, when the snow falls in the game and the Christmas event gets under way.
Already have mine on. I turned them on once the Thanksgiving update hit.
Like Alissa said, it’s never too early!
Springfield lights will go on the day after Thanksgiving. My home decorations will go up and on December 1st. Any earlier is just too early.
There’s a light plunger that turns on all lights at once??? I was still doing it manually! How do I get one??
Gotta see if it comes back in the store
The Christmas decorating will be activated on December 1st for me, even though I’m sure the Christmas event will start next Tuesday. I don’t acknowledge the Christmas season until December 1st. Really hoping that there isn’t a days delay in being able to update to the Christmas event when it becomes live like with the Thanksgiving update. I’m going to need all the play time I can get before my surgery on the 29th (Wed).
Sorry to hear about you having surgery hope everything goes well.
🌷🌸🌹🍀🌺🌻🌼 🍩
🎬🎥🐒 . See ya bye . 👽
Thanks for your well wishes. I’m not too worried about it. There’s always a risk with any surgery, but I have an excellent surgeon and this surgery will be a lot simpler and quicker than the one I had in April. I’m very much looking forward to this surgery and getting back to normal again.
Really hope we have some potted Poinsettias this year…and maybe some Holly bushes or smaller Christmas trees for decorating…and an Ice Rink (as long as I’m wishing) where the kids can have jobs skating.
Those are all great suggestions!
All sound like wonderful ideas to me. Lets hope we get them and that they don’t cost donuts.
I look forward to the Christmas Event, granted we get a good Christmas Event this year……that’s right EA the tapping community remembers last year’s mess. All aside I really look forward to when we get snow in our towns. For me that’s when the Christmas lights look great. I wish EA would give us an option to complete all character tasks in one move.
I loved last year. I have all the traditional stuff I want. The only reason I hope they do an Americanized corporate Christmas is so people won’t quit playing and end the game.
Sorry! Voice to text spelled your name wrong, Alissa. 😳😳
No worries
I mtght flip the switch soon…. Gotta get in the spirit.
Drink a little eggnog and that’ll put you in the spirit .
Yes, yes it will .
🎬🎥🐒 . See ya bye . 👽
I’m with you Alissa, I’ve already had my lights on for at least a week or two now! 🎄🎅🎁🤶🎄
This year in the game I’m going to put the lights up on December 1st and take them down around mid January using the light plunger, there are some lights for houses that I am still missing for houses such as Skinners house and Wiggums house that I would like to get. I would LOVE to see more new lights for the mansions, houses, apartments and any other building including the limited-time and non limited-time ones such as Quimbys mansion, Fat Tony’s summer house and Burns’ summer house, Krusty’s mansion, Herb’s mansion, Stacy’s house, Kane manor, Artie’s Mansion and the Heights mansions; Patty and Selma’s apartment, Kirk’s apartment, Lovejoys’ house, Powers house, Retirement Castle and the ones from events including the Sci-Fi houses.
I. Hope we get more Christmas 🎄 skins for the buildings.
On of my real life neighbors is already unboxing his outdoor lights. When he ready with decorating his house, it will almost look like tehe 🎄🎄🎄Simpsons house 🎄🎄🎄
I haven’t really had the best winters the last few years, so I never had the desire to go all out on Christmas in my Springfield.. if I was even playing.
This year is different. I’m feeling better in real life and I want to bring that out in my Springfield. The few (free) Christmas decorations I have are now out, and I have a plot of land ready for anything Christmas brings.
I hope we can buy lights this year (hopefully at a good discount)… and some of the other old things I missed out on.
I’m really excited for Christmas to start! 🎁🎅🎄❄️
I actually turned them on by accident on Saturday. Must have hit the plunger when I was scrolling through town. Decided it was time enough and left them on. They do look a little odd without the snow though. Wish we had a plunger for that as well.
Finally started playing TSTO after quitting Christmas 2014. So excited for my first full time event back in the game!
Welcome back Eric. Like real life around my house, the lights will be on Friday.
One of my pet peeves about a few of our neighbors is that they put up and turn on their Christmas lights wwwwwwaaaaaaayyyyyyyyyy too early. At least two of the neighbors in the neighborhood started turning on their outdoor Christmas lights the night after Halloween! So for nearly one quarter of the year (November-mid January) they have their damn lights on. Where I grew up (not here) there was a strict unwritten rule that Christmas lights were turned on between Thanksgiving and January 2. That’s it no exceptions.
I’m a Summer kind of guy. I get tired of the cold, dark, dreary days of Winter. Seeing those Christmas lights turned on all of the time is just a reminder of how far away from Summer we are. Every year I dread seeing the lights go up, and every year I cheer when the lights come down, because when the lights come down I know we’re that much closer to Summer and bright, warm, happy days.
Don’t get me wrong. I like seeing the first snow of the season. My wife and I go cross country skiing, etc. I also don’t mind seeing pretty Christmas light displays. It’s neat for a while, BUT NOT FOR MONTH AFTER MONTH.
Also- My wife’s birthday is on Christmas. So for us- Christmas is a detractor from her birthday. Christmas and the family always seem to come first, and my wife’s birthday is an after thought.
So I say “Bah, Humbug”. I guess. Let’s get this over with and look forward to Summer.
Fyi… for whatever reason the spam filter picked this up and marked it as spam. I unspammed… but goes to show you the spam filter is weird.
Word Press has not been kind to me lately, and I don’t know why.
I’m trying to figure out the spam trigger in it. So strange
He said “Bah, Humbug” 🤣
Lol I guess so
Last year was my first Christmas, so I don’t have many lights. But lights I have are on. I hope this year I will be able to buy more lights, I’ve been saving my doughnuts since October waiting for this. I love that you already turned on you lights…. Christmas is my favorite time of the year, the kids and I have already started watching Christmas movies…
Unlike the Wookiee, the Wookieemama does not decorate anything for Christmas until December 11th. Grew up with Christmas decorations not being allowed until after my Dad’s birthday on December 10th. So even though I am all grown up with children of my own and I have my own home I still cannot bring myself to have Christmas until December 11th. I’m sure my Dad is looking down at me and laughing since it was my mother that made that rule, not him.
Old habits and traditions die hard…even after the originator dies! In our family, we had to at least wait until Santa showed up for the Macy’s TG Parade.
At least you have a reason behind it. 😀 our house, however, will be decorated on Friday lol
I love my lights, and yes…like you, I well remember “the good ole days” of having to turn them on/off manually! Put the plunger is soooooo nice 🙂
One lights question if I might? About the time of the Bart casino, in his treehouse… my Christmas lights for the treehouse are gone! What happened unique to me…or everyone lose those lights?
Turned on my lights two days ago. Just waiting for the snow to fall.
Day after Thanksgiving, lights go on at home and Springfield. Happy Thanksgiving everyone!
Usually when there’s snow in the game. Cletus’s farm is up year round because meth heads…
And my church is in its corporate skin year around because of my beliefs on religion in general.