Family has holiday cheer,
and so does their house
By jennifer dome
Staff Writer
FARRAH MAFFAI Denise, Brandon and James Madalone outside their South River home.
SOUTH RIVER — The Madalones of Morningside Avenue have gone above and beyond decking the halls with boughs of holly.
Their home, which sits on a small hill, is decorated with more Christmas lights, figurines and blow-up characters than some may have thought possible for one yard.
However, Denise and James Madalone say that each year they find more and more to add to their Yuletide display.
"Every year my husband says we’re not spending any more money," Denise said.
But, James noted, every year the decorations just get better.
This year, the home is decorated with spiral Christmas trees that light up, illuminated Santa Claus figures that line the driveway, and each window is frosted with snow.
Every bush is covered with lights, of course, and a sign indicates that Madalones’ home is in the North Pole.
On the roof of the home, Santa Claus sits with his sleigh and reindeer and another Santa Claus appears to be climbing the chimney.
"Many a night we stand across the street and look at [the decorations]," Denise said.
One year, a school bus stopped in front of the home because the students were upset that a reindeer on Santa’s sleigh had fallen over, Denise said. Since it was near the end of the holiday season, her husband had decided to leave the fallen reindeer as it was until the children asked them to put it upright, she said.
Schoolchildren aren’t the only passers-by that have stopped to see the Madalones’ 8-foot-high blow-up Grinch and Frosty the Snowman, among the other frills. Each year, neighbors ask the family when they will start putting up their decorations.
"He works really hard," Denise said about her husband’s decorating duties. It takes the family about two weeks, working in the evenings and on weekends, to complete their holiday display, she said.
While Denise said she won’t go out in the rain to help James, he does have some help from their 5-year-old son, Brandon, and from James’ mother, who helps decorate the inside of the home.
"I’ll go out there in the cold … but it doesn’t bother me," James said, adding that he was even decorating during the snowstorm on Dec. 5.
The detached garage of the Madalones’ home is the storage site of all their decorations, Denise said. Most of their friends can hardly believe that the entire space is used to store holiday trimmings, but it’s true, she said.
Christmas may be the Madalones’ favorite holiday to decorate for, but the family also decorates with reds for Valentine’s Day and greens for St. Patrick’s Day.
The Madalones decorate their home for just about every holiday in which decorations are appropriate.
Besides Christmas, though, the most popular display with the neighbors is Halloween, Denise said.
Some families have even asked to take pictures of their children beside the spooky displays, which now feature a smoke machine and a Dracula that rises out of a coffin.
One year, a fire truck pulled up outside the Morningside Avenue home, causing Denise to worry, she said.
However, she learned that the firefighters were told to view the Halloween decorations at her home.
Not long after they left, two police vehicles came to her home as well, but once again they were visiting only to see the display.
"The people look for it. They stop by and say they can’t wait [for the decorations]," James said.
The Christmas spirit is one of the reasons why it is the Madalones’ favorite holiday to decorate for, Denise said.
"I like the spirit of Christmas. I like to give, more than receive," she said. "We have a lot to be thankful for."