When is it "acceptable" to decorate for Christmas?

I have been obsessing over the holidays; the anticipation is killing me!  Growing up I was always against the overplayed nature of the Christmas season and have always abided to a strict guideline to when it is and isn't appropriate to decorate for Christmas.  My birthday is in late October, and it really began to irritate me when holiday decorations were displayed in department stores before Halloween had occurred.  It's not that I don't love Christmas (as I'll get back to momentarily), but seeing stores reap monetary benefits off of overplaying a sacred holiday really felt wrong.  Listening to Christmas music for the first time while shopping always gets me giddy, but I think there should be a set date that stores must wait until in order to keep the holiday season as holy and appreciated as possible.  As difficult as it has been (especially since Christmas decorations were up early October this year), Nick & I decided the Saturday/Sunday after Thanksgiving would be our date to decorate.  This has usually been my rule of thumb; but with someone else having input as well it makes it easier to not fall into the temptation.  It makes it especially easier when the person who keeps me "in check" happens to LOVE Thanksgiving, and is upset that it is quickly losing its' luster; you can't find any sort of Thanksgiving decorations... for example, Target jumped directly from their Halloween decoration display to their Christmas display.

With all this said, I am counting down the minutes until that weekend (14,400-ish to date), and continue to display awful spending habits on Christmas gifts and decor.  I have even created a laundry list of ideas for other purchases, as well as Christmas craft and homemade decor ideas (courtesy of Pinterest - Follow me!).  I also continually find myself on Etsy, at Hobby Lobby, and discussing ideas with co-faculty in anticipation of the season.   Being totally on my own now, I have found and even deeper appreciation and level of excitement for the season.  I can finally afford to purchase and create things that I think my family and friends deserve/would love.

With all that said, here are some of my holiday season must-haves:

A tree light timer - to ensure that my tree is sparkling bright when I return home from work

Mariah Carey's Merry Christmas album on repeat and full-blast during tree/home decorating

Cranberry wreaths, tree fillers, and other decor; for some reason cranberries are so "Christmas-y" to me!

A brand new set of advent candles for my advent wreath (and maybe spruce it up a bit, too to resemble this one more)

ABC Family's 25 days of Christmas on nightly to catch some of my favorites like "The Grinch" and "Elf"

Homemade sugar cookies, decorations, etc. to share with others as well as enjoy at home

Stay tuned for more holiday posts; I can ensure you that once that weekend comes, I'll have a lot more excitement built up and will be dying to share it all (as well as some pictures, perhaps!)