The Osborne Family Spectacle of Lights -- What Christmas is Really About!

In 1986, six-year-old Breezy Osborne asked her father if he would hang some Christmas lights on their house in Little Rock, Arkansas. He agreed, and modestly decorated the house with 1,000 red lights. Osborne has a competitive spirit, though, and he began adding more and more lights each year.

By 1993, the display had grown to 3 million lights and could be seen by plane from as far as 80 miles away. The Osborne’s fed up neighbors, a.k.a The Party Poopers, filed a lawsuit that made its way to the Arkansas Supreme Court, and the display was shut down. Enter Disney, who brought the Osborne's festival of lights to the park in Orlando, Florida.

I was recently at Disney World and witnessed this Christmas extravaganza. Amidst blustering fake snow, 4 million blinding lights, a rotating 100-foot-tall globe, and a rock version of “Carol of the Bells,” I couldn’t help but think, “Ahhh…this is what Christmas is really about!”

I truly enjoyed the ridiculousness of the display, and then I grew embarrassed by my own pathetic light show last year – a few strings of large, colorful bulbs strung along the windows. I mean, if I'm going to decorate, I should go all out, right?

Do you have a picture of your great holiday light display? Send it to tellus@parenting.com -- it could be featured on the site!