In the United States, the spirit of Christmas arrives (62) a month before the holiday itself．Late in November, street lights and store windows are (63) with the traditional Christmas colors () , red and green．Snowmen, Santa Claus, shepherds, angels, and Nativity scenes appear in countless shop windows．Fir trees, holly wreaths, and mistletoe(槲寄生, 其小枝常用作圣诞节的装饰)are familiar sights． Families decorate their homes, inside and out, with (65) lights and evergreens．
The manufacture and distribution of Christmas items is big business．Stores depend upon Christmas shoppers for about one-fourth of their (66) sales．Smart shoppers buy their gifts in November or early December, before the"Christmas rush" makes shopping a chore．Christmas is expensive．To earn (67) money for gifts, thousands of Americans get part-time jobs during December (68) mail or selling gifts, trees, ornaments, or greeting cards．Many people make monthly bank (69) in special Christmas (70) so that they will have enough money to (71) a nice Christmas for meir faInilies．
Although Americans enjoy the commercial gaiety of Christmas, the most beautiful and meaningful aspects of the holiday occur at home and in (72) ．Many families go to church (73) Christmas Eve and Christmas morning．After (74) , they gather around the tree and open their (75) ．Then they sit down to enjoy a (76) Christmas dinner—turkey or ham, sweet potatoes, vegetables, cranberry sauce, and nuts． (77) dessert, there is usually fruitcake, plum pudding, or mince pie．
Perhaps children are the happiest (78) Christmas．They receive gifts from their parents and grandparents, they send Christmas (79) to their companions and friends, (80) ．good wishes to people they love．Sometimes they even can enjoy a wonderful Christmas night with snow falling outside, dreaming (81) Santa Claus cramming bags and bags small gifts into their shoes and socks．