Ornament Review: Christmas Window #9 - Sporting Goods Store - 2011 Hallmark Ornament

Stars: 5 out of 5

Pros: Feels like a sporting goods store

Cons: Lack of much Christmassy; no Frisbees!

The Bottom Line:

A sporty Christmas

Christmas dream of many boys

Ornament for them

A Sporting Good Christmas Window from 2011

I was such a reader that I think of books when I think of great Christmas presents.  And yet, when I saw the subject of the 2011 Christmas Window ornament from Hallmark, it immediately loved it.  I mean, a Sporting Goods store is perfect for boys, right?

And that's exactly who we have peering in this Christmas window.  There's a boy out front with his dog jumping up on his leg.  He's looking in the window at a red bike with a green bow on it.  At least that's what it looks like.  He could also be looking at the basketball or the skateboard in the window.  On his right is a tree make out of three balls, baseball on top, soccer ball, and then a basketball on the bottom.  When you turn the window around, you'll find a football, a tub of baseballs, and a volleyball on the shelf under the window.  Above the window are two sports posters.

My most serious complaint?  There's not one single Frisbee to be found anywhere.  Since I love ultimate Frisbee, this is obviously a most serious omission.

Okay, fine, that's not my complaint.  In reality, my complaint here fits in with the one I've been making for a couple of entries in this series by now - where's the Christmas decorations?  Outside of the bow on the bike, it doesn't feel much like Christmas at all.  Heck, there's even no snow on the roof of the shop (although the boy and his dog are standing in snow).  However, for some reason, this doesn't bother me as much this time around.

At lot of fans of the series weren't happy with this one because the store feels more modern while the earlier entries felt a little more nostalgic.  While I can see their point (the posters help with that feel), I like it for that reason.  Heck, it makes me want to go to a sporting good store to grab a new pair of cleats for ultimate Frisbee.

Tammy Haddix sculpted this ornament, and she threw in a couple of fun touches.  The boy is wearing his hat backwards, and you can see a large H on it.  Secondly, if you move the ornament just right to see past the boy, you can see that the bike is a Haddix brand.  This wasn't the only ornament to feature that sports brand this year - Tammy also made it the brand that the snowmen were sledding on in the 2011 Making Memories ornament.

As always, there is a large, flat base to this ornament, making it easy for those like me who want to display it with the others in the series on a shelf, mantel, or under the tree.  If you do decide to hang it, you'll notice it tips slightly toward the outside of the scene, but it's not a bad tip at all.  And the 9 in a Christmas tree is located on the bottom since this is a series piece.

While this may not be as Christmassy as I would like, I do still enjoy the Sporting Goods store.  After all, this is a Christmas Window designed for us guys.

Be sure to check out the rest of the Christmas Windows series.

Original Price: $19.95