The 25 Baubles of Pop Culture! Advent 2022 Day 11

Though dinosaurs pre-dated Christ, that doesn't mean that they don't enjoy the holidays either. Here's a look at some Christmas ornaments inspired by the 1993 Steven Spielberg classic and the film franchise it spawned.

To start, we go with the king of the thunder lizards- the T-Rex. This 2019 magic ornament from Hallmark recreates the closing battle of the first film. Just when the heroes of that movie thought that they were going to become raptor food, the T-Rex swooped in and saved the day. As the dinosaur claimed victory, a banner fluttered down proclaiming 'When Dinosaurs Ruled The Earth.' With this ornament, one only has to press a button playing the beautiful John Williams theme.

Next one I want to share is this 2021 Hallmark ornament. Thanks to the nostalgia of VHS tapes, Hallmark has been releasing a number of trinkets based on the cassettes. Since watching the film at home on my VCR was how I first experienced the movie, I wanted to share my memories of the classic with this decoration that could be bought at any local Wal-
Mart or Target store. 

From the DIY department, those of you wanting to make your own Jurassic Park ornament, all you need is a tiny Christmas tree, some hot glue, a ribbon or hook and a matchbox car. See, what you do is take one of the many different types of vehicles based on the film series (in this case, a Jeep), hot glue a tiny tree, found at any craft store, to the top or back of the car and it looks like the staff on Isla Nublar are getting ready for the holidays!

Want to personalize your Jurassic Park ornaments? Try this colorful ceramic ornament found on Etsy. There's a lot of great handmade baubles on Etsy but I think this one is my favorite. With that recognizable font and sleek design of a T-Rex skull surrounded by a brightly light wreath, I felt that if Jurassic Park was a real place, these would be the ornaments that they'd sell in the gift shop. I can just see a spinner rack full of names from A-Z selling these. 

Before I close this look at Jurassic Park, I want to help those of you who are fans of Jeff Goldblum. If you can't get enough of Dr. Ian Malcolm, have I found an ornament for you!!! It's a framed needlepoint ornament of Goldblum in his semi-shirtless pose that has become a meme until itself along with one of the character's most famous quotes- 'Life finds a way.'

Now it's time for the gift. The only thing that seems missing from this Advent post appears to be the score written by the legendary John Williams. I mentioned it earlier. But it's like describing a beautiful sunset but not letting anybody see it. So, as my Advent present for you today, here's a 3 minute video of a home's Christmas lights set to a melody of Jurassic Park themes.

Enjoy!