Christmas 2025 Light Show
The Decorations
- Singing Bell - Built by Beatriz McGonagill, Painted by Beatriz and Sofia McGonagill
- 6 Candy Canes - Built by Beatriz McGonagill, Painted and Sparkled by Beatriz and Sofia McGonagill
- 6 Small Starts - Built by Beatriz McGonagill, Painted and Sparkled by Beatriz and Sofia McGonagill
- 12 Snow Flakes - Built by Beatriz McGonagill, Painted and Sparkled by Beatriz and Sofia McGonagill
- 2 Big Stars - Build by ArcRite Welding (Clay Taylor) - Idea George McGonagill and Judy McGonagill - Painted and lit by Beatriz and Sofia McGoangill
- 10 Ft Smart Light Tree - Built by Brian McGonagill
- Merry Christmas and Feliz Navidad signs - Built and Painted by Beatriz McGonagill
- Ornaments (Hope, Joy, Snoopy, Woodstock) - Built and Painted by Beatriz McGonagill and Sofia McGonagill - Idea - Sofia McGonagill
- Arches - Design and Build - Brian and Beatriz McGonagill
- Roof Line - Decorated by Brian McGonagill (Still haven't fallen off yet - whew!)
Total Smart Pixel Lights 4200 (so far)
The Music
- Jingle Bell Rock - Bobby Helmes - https://youtu.be/nIhs1T7OcZg?si=pwNyKJc7q_OZ3Euq
- Silver Bells - cover by Relient K - https://youtu.be/jASkYlYNU1I?si=3IfR8eoKtoP2zkFl
- Little Drummer Boy - Live - Calvary Orlando - https://youtu.be/B12lO-gv1c0?si=UQzGBDnQM8qnLYSQ
- Southern Kind of Christmas - Al Ingram - https://share.opensourceisawesome.com/s/ew68pptjgC
The Hardware
- Plywood (1/2 inch)
- Spray Paint
- Glitter
- Clear Coat
- Wood Screws of various sizes
- Stakes https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0D1JWHWNB?th=1 <-- not an affiliate link
- Falcon F16v3 Controller Board for Pixel Lighting - https://pixelcontroller.com/store/featured/88-f16v5.html <-- F16v5 (newer and better)
- Raspberry Pi 3b+
- 100s of feet of 3 wire cabling - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07ZGFVH81 <-- not an affiliate link
- xConnect Pigtails - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B09CDQWTFG?th=1 <-- not an affiliate link
- more than 4200 xConnect Bullet Style Pixel Lights WS2811 12Volt - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0CNXPYQF5 <-- not an affiliate link
- FM Transmitter - Basewish CZE-7C 6W FM Transmitter
- Meanwell 12V / 60 A (300 W) power supply
The Software
- xLights - https://xlights.org/
- Falcon Player (formerly Falcon Pi Player aka FPP) - https://falconchristmas.com/forum/index.php?board=8.0
- Audacity - https://www.audacityteam.org/
- ZorinOS - Linux - https://zorin.com/os/
- xLights Model Creator - https://www.lightshowhub.com/tools/xlights-custom-model-builder
Why we build
We love to do this. Really and truly, as much as we run into time crunches with life, and frustrations with things just not quite working out exactly the way we planned, it's a blast. The final product is always a huge joy for us. We hope everyone who sees the shows is inspired, entertained, and leaves a little more happy than when they arrived.
It's one of those things I remember doing with my Dad when I was younger. My mom always wanted us to decorate, and it always happened to fall on the weekend after Thanksgiving because that's when I was home from college. I treasure that time I got to spend with him, freezing our butt's off out in the north wind hanging those very thin, glass, easily breakable C9 lights. We broke as many as we didn't, but we had fun. Mom always had a warm drink for us when we finished.
This is the first year in eight years of doing this at this house that it was relatively cold here. Most years it's in the 70's and 80's, but this year it was around 38 degrees, then wind was blowing, and my daughter and wife got to feel what i remember from my days doing this with my dad.
Best to you all, and hope you enjoyed the show!