Have a holly, jolly apron ...

I'll admit this one. It's kind of hard getting into the holiday spirit in Florida.

To state the obvious, there's no snow. A week or so ago the temperature hit 80. There are no fluffy green trees or deer running around or snowmen or anything else that smacks of Christmas.

How could a girl from one of the most wintry places in the Great White North not notice?

It hit me the first year I was living in Florida. I went through all of the motions of getting ready for the holidays - decorating the apartment, sending cards, baking cookies - but it still didn't feel like Christmas. I got bitter about it.

To make matters worse, that same year I spent the week before Christmas taking my turn answering calls from irate readers complaining about everything from the size of the print in the newspaper to a late delivery.

What a happy, jolly way to kick off my holiday.

But then my last day on the job before heading home to Buffalo, Santa brought me a little bit of Christmas magic. On Christmas Eve, the phone line flooded with calls from people wanting information about where to make donations of food and clothing, or where to send presents to U.S. soldiers.

Yes, Tiffany, the Christmas spirit does abound, even in the land of palm trees and surfer Santas.

Ever since then, I take it one year at a time, looking for the small and subtle ways to gear up for the holidays, often times the ones that don't require a whole lot of energy or planning.

Some years are easier than others, and this wasn't one of them. I didn't bother with the cookies or cards. Maybe spending the weeks before Christmas reporting on childhood hunger, homelessness and teen suicide dampers the holiday spirit. Maybe this was just a long and tough year for the whole country.

But, just as always, the holiday spirit eventually caught up with me.

It could have been seeing my Christmas presents all ready to pack sitting on the kitchen table. Or the anticipation of spending a quiet evening at home - something I love but hadn't done for a while - making a warm and comforting mushroom soup.

Or maybe it hit when I opened my kitchen cabinet and saw the little corner of poinsettia fabric.

My holiday apron.

My mom started making seasonal aprons a few years ago, something that stemmed from a general dissatisfaction with the selection available on the retail market. We have fall aprons, holiday aprons and summery aprons with bright floral colors, all with special tags sewn in the front with loving messages from mom.

I saw it and that Saturday night I was ready when the Christmas spirit came looking for me.

I cranked up the Christmas tunes, wrapped myself in holiday cheer and started cooking.