Outside Christmas Decorations          I moved into a new neighborhood last summer, thinking it looked like a normal place to live. My neighbors all seemed nice and normal, there wasn't anything too strange about them. The day after Thanksgiving, I changed my opinion.   When I left for work that morning, all was well in my neighborhood. When I returned home in the early evening, my jaw dropped.   I thought that perhaps I was on the wrong road. Apparently, my neighbors try to outdo each other with their outdoor Christmas decorations. The house directly across from me, as well as on both sides of my house, had outdoor Christmas decorations covering their front lawns and homes.   I'm not just talking about ordinary outdoor Christmas decorations that people oohh and ahh over, I'm talking about the most tacky decorations you can imagine.    Most of the outdoor Christmas decorations that were scattered all over the lawns were the kind that lit up. Since it was early evening and the sun was already setting, they were all lit up in their bright glory.   I pulled into my driveway and just stared. I was absolutely appalled and embarrassed. I wanted to pack up my things and move right back to my old neighborhood. Directly across from me was a giant lit Santa. He must have been at least 6 feet tall and by far, the most ridiculous of all of the outdoor Christmas decorations on my block. He was swaying slightly in the breeze, making him appear as if he was waving at me.   I couldn't get over the fact that all of my neighbors had managed to get all of their outdoor Christmas decorations set up in only a few hours. Apparently, I had not received the neighborhood decorating schedule.    Just dressing up your trees with Outside Christmas Decorations can go a long way towards making your yard look spectacular.   And once you throw in outdoor Christmas lights around your windows, it will make your home look cheery and festive like you would not believe. But you can do other things as well to capitalize on the outdoor decorations that you already have all year round.   For example, you can put red and blue cellophane over the porch lamps, or replace the bulbs with blinking Christmas ones. Another simple way to accentuate your house for Christmas is to line your walkway with paper lanterns. Cheap, beautiful, and so easy!    My husband was just as shocked as I was. We laughed about it that night after dinner. We decided that the next day, we would put our outdoor Christmas decorations out and hopefully our neighbors will learn some things from the simplicity of ours. We aren't the type to go overboard.   That night, there was an annoying glow that shone in our bedroom window from the lighted outdoor Christmas decorations of our neighbors. I fell asleep wishing there would be a power outage on my street. Christmas is coming!