Holly neighbourhood lives up to its name with Christmas cheer

Savannah Miranda loves brightening up her Barrie home with a huge Christmas lights display.

But more than that, she loves the even brighter smiles it brings to the faces of the people in her south-end neighbourhood.

“We used to live in Mississauga and we had a smaller home and we really didn’t have the property or the space to do something extravagant," she tells BarrieToday. "Then, when we moved up here, and had a little bit of extra property and a bit of a bigger house, we took advantage."

Each year, with the help of her parents, who also live in the home, they expand on the display, which is located at 68 Coughlin Rd., near Mapleton Avenue and Essa Road.

“We use the same lights we’ve had, but try to (make) different scenes or a different look going each year so that it’s not boring," Miranda says. 

Hearing the joy it brings to people who come by to see the display is worth the hours of work that goes into it each year, she adds.

Planning for next year’s setup has already pretty much already started, too. The physical setup typically begins each year as early as November in order to get everything ready for them to flip the switch on for Dec. 1.

“Depending on weather and time and when my dad is available, we start prepping in October-ish … pulling everything out and making sure it’s all in working order,” she says. “I know last year it took us a lot longer because we got hit with snow pretty early and then with the cold, no one wants to be out in the cold for too long!”

This year, they have been better prepared and were able to get everything set up pretty smoothly, Miranda says. They have also added a nativity scene to the side of the house, which she says has long been a goal for her mother.

“The nativity is many years in the works and all handmade. It took many years of work and we finally figured out how to do the stable this year to go with it,” she says. “We love how it looks on the side of the house.”

Despite their attempts to guess how many bulbs — or feet of lights — they use, Miranda admits they’ve never been able to quite figure it out.

“There’s a lot,” she says with a laugh.

As for why she loves the holiday so much, Miranda tells BarrieToday she just likes to see the smiles of the people around her.

“It’s just that time of year. Some people can be bah-humbug about it … but we have always been a Christmas-y, joyous family," she says. 

“I am a winter person and I do enjoy the happiness and the smiles, and the giggling of the kids,” Miranda adds. “It’s for us, (but) it’s for everybody else, plus it inspires others. It started off with not many houses (on the street) having many lights and maybe a couple of days after we start putting up the lights, the rest of the street starts putting lights on.”

The lights will be on daily from 5-10 p.m., sometimes later, until January, she noted.

“Tradition says the king arrived to see Jesus on Jan. 6, so we leave it until the closest to the sixth … or the weekend after new year’s.”

Anyone interested in seeing other great Christmas displays around the region can visit the Simcoe County Christmas Lights Facebook page.