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“Every good and perfect gift is from above, coming down from the Father of the heavenly lights...”
~ James 1:17

Friday, March 10, 2017

Hallmark's *CHRISTMAS MOVIE* Bracket Challenge Begins + "When Calls the Heart" - All New This Weekend!


Sunday March 12, 2016



Get Ready to Pick
all of your Christmas Movie Favorites!

Here's how it works:
via Hallmark: Starting March 12th (Sunday), you’ll be able to create your own Holiday bracket (on-line on Hallmark's web-site) and choose YOUR favorite Christmas movie! For each voting round, you’ll accumulate points based on the most popular movies with the largest number of votes. Contestants with the most points are then eligible to win $10,000, $2,500 & $1,000!

Visit Hallmark's Meow Madness Page for more details! I hope many of you will Score BIG!


Then, on Sunday night - step back in time to the early pioneer era with...



Story Synopsis via Hallmark - EPISODE 4 - Change of Heart: "Abigail's tenure as mayor is threatened as Gowen plots in the shadows to be reinstated. Elizabeth finds her job in jeopardy. Jack reunites with a younger Mountie he mentored at the Academy as he passes through town, while newcomer Carson Shepherd lands a job at the cafΓ©. Rosemary helps Cody scheme to..." Click Here to Read More...

See the Premiere of "When Calls the Heart"
Sunday March 12, 2016
at 9pm/8c. on the Hallmark Channel

 *Actor Paul Greene ("Perfect Match," "A Christmas Detour," "Campfire Kiss") joins the "When Calls the Heart" series in this episode!

Hope you all have lots of FUN
with the *CHRISTMAS MOVIE* Bracket
It will be quite the Challenge to choose between
all of our dear *CHRISTMAS MOVIE* Favorites!!!


Have a Wonderful Weekend...
as we SPRING FORWARD one hour ahead-
inching closer to the Spring Season!!!

44 comments:

  1. Does the winner have to pay taxes on their earnings?

    ReplyDelete
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    1. Yes. According to the Christmas Bracket Challenge rules on Hallmark's web-site: "All federal, state and local taxes resulting from acceptance and use of prize are the responsibility of the winner."

      You can see all the official rules here:
      http://www.hallmarkchannel.com/meow-madness/meow-madness-christmas-bracket-rules

      Hope that helps!

      Delete
  2. This is so exciting! I almost can't believe it's real. I've told all my friends and family all about this, too. Some roll their eyes and look the other way until I say money is involved. Then they are suddenly interested. Most are not exactly die hard Christmas movie fans, but I least I've won them over on the cash prizes. Can't wait to fill out my bracket! Thanks Net for the reminder!

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    1. That's too cute! I also can't wait to do this Christmas movie bracket challenge! And, I do think it will most definitely be a challenge! I've looked over the list of Christmas movies a few times wondering which ones might be matched up and I've been counting down the days! I almost feel like it's Christmas again! Almost!

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    2. I know what you mean Net. It gives me that Christmasy feeling again. It was so much fun picking that first bracket. I loved it. We can pick a new bracket every day through March 23rd for more chances to win. It was so hard choosing when some of my favorites went head to head.

      Delete
  3. Susan - Des MoineSunday, March 12, 2017

    Obviously people will keep their picks close to their vest so I won't discuss that but I'm curious to see which of the four sections was the most difficult for the loyal visitors of this sight? For me, it was definitely the movies of 2015. There were just so many average movies that year with so few stand-outs that it's not only difficult to choose my favorites but also to guess what other people may have liked as well. Can't wait to start seeing the results in a couple of weeks!

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    1. That is an interesting question, Susan! I would love to know that answer, as well! I didn't fill my bracket out on Sunday, but plan to do so soon! I think it all sounds hard to choose! Challenging!

      I wish we could share (just for fun!) our answers, but that would probably be against the rules. Shoot! (Get the pun!)

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  4. Is it just me or are others having a problem with this Challenge on Hallmark's website today?

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    1. Oh dear, I haven't heard of any issues, Mark. Do you suppose we are required to have certain updates on our iPhones/iPads for it to work? That could be a possibility.

      Delete
    2. It was early afternoon when I was having a problem. It seemed to be working by the evening.

      Delete
  5. I've read the rules several times, but I am slightly confused. Are we picking our favorite movies or what we think is the most popular or both?

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    1. My understanding is this... we are attempting to choose the winners. In other words, we are supposed to pick the most popular chosen movies by the other Hallmark fans.

      I compare it to the basketball bracket challenge... You have these selection of 64 teams, and of course you have your favorites team or teams, but when you fill out the bracket and you think your team will probably loose to another team they are matched up with, sadly, you cannot pick your beloved team. You would logically choose the other and move on to the next round.

      That's how I see it! Would love to know what you all think!!!

      Delete
    2. Susan - Des MoineMonday, March 13, 2017

      You're picking the movie that you think the majority of other people will pick. It may not be a movie that you prefer but you may have heard a lot of people rave about it. That's what makes this such a challenge. For example, in the first round you have a movie that many people here love - "The 9 Lives of Chrismtas". But it's going up against "Meet the Santas". Meet the Santas has been around a good deal longer than 9 Lives so more people may have seen and re-watched it over the years. But 9 Lives is newer and perhaps more fresh in people's minds. Which one will more people vote for? Guess we'll find out! Good luck!

      Delete
    3. Net, unless I have misinterpreted the rules, we can pick a new bracket every day from March 12th through March 23rd so you can have 12 brackets in your pool if you like. With that in mind I have chosen to pick one of those 12 (the first one) as my favorites only and then another one of who I think others will mostly vote for and then just keep mixing and matching through out the 12 mixing thought popular with my favorites.

      I kind of come up with a handful of the movies that I think will win and then mix and match others but finding ways for these handful to be the winner through out the 12.

      To Anonymous, I heard that there was a problem with the bracket working on Internet Explorer and Microsoft Edge. Not sure if they have fixed it yet. However, Google Chrome works fine.

      Delete
    4. Susan & Jim, you've both explained it spot on! Excellent Coaching!!! Now, let's all hustle back out there and PLAY BALL... I mean - PICK MOVIES!!!! :)

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    5. You are cute as a button Net.

      I'm not doing it to win. I know my chances of winning are slim and none. I am picking a bracket every day just for the fun of it. To get that little bit of Christmas high that I love every day leading up to the Meow National Champion picked and then especially seeing the Champion showed on TV on April 7th.

      Delete
    6. Susan - Des MoineMonday, March 13, 2017

      Jim - It sounds like you have a winning formula. It's similar to College Basketball's March Madness. Picking the winners in the first or second rounds doesn't mean that much. The important thing is making sure you get the Final 4, Final 2, and eventual winner correct. That's where you rack up all the points. Mathematically, I can't see a person winning this contest without correctly predicting the Final 4, 2 and eventual winner.

      Delete
    7. Susan..we should have gotten together before this started and wrote some computer code to feed the Hallmark Christmas bracket into and guaranteed ourselves a winner..lol

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  6. I don't know how this is going to work.

    Just my luck, two of my all time favourites Snow Bride and A Boyfriend For Christmas are pitted against each other in the first round!

    There also seems a problem to me in that you get points based on how large the votes are for your selections, therefore even if you prefer one of the Movies but know it is going to get the fewer votes it pays you to vote for the other one!

    I've voted honestly on which Movie of the two I've preferred.

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    1. "Snow Bride" vs. "A Boyfriend for Christmas"- Yikes that's a tough one! I'll have to go with my heart on that one!

      I think voting honestly is a good way to go! Thank you for sharing!!! :)

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    2. I agree. Tough choice between Snow Bride & Boyfriend. Some bad match ups also -My Christmas Dream vs Christmas Homestead. they were ok but far from being a classic. Starting to sound like my sports friends about the bracket. How did they leave out Trading Christmas, Grandpa for Christmas, Most Wonderful Time of the Year, Mrs. Miracle, Shepherd for Christmas or Hitched for the Holidays!!!! This bracket is RIGGED!!!! :-)

      Delete
    3. I know, tvh - I was thinking the same thing when I commented here and said it was an absolute shocker that "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year" with Brooke Burns, Warren Christie, and Henry Winkler was left off the list!

      As I said in that comment, I actually think that one could have been the ultimate winner, if it had been a choice. Or, close to it, anyway! Who knows?

      I was thinking through other movies not chosen, too, and was also missing the "Mrs. Miracle" movies... and thank you for the reminder on "A Grandpa for Christmas." Oh my, I love that one, too!

      Plus, as RG mentioned... they left out fan-favorite "Matchmaker Santa" with Lacey Chabert!

      In addition to that, they left out another one of my all time favorites...
      "Love at the Thanksgiving Day Parade!"

      I can't help from wonder how they narrowed it down to the 64 movies that were chosen. I'm puzzled?????

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    4. As you know Net, one of my all time favorite Hallmark Christmas movies is "The Most Wonderful Time of the Year". I was also very disappointed it didn't make the cut. We were robbed I tell ya!! Plenty of quality wins during the last nine years. The RPI score is better than most that got in. Oh well, I guess it will have to play in the NIT like Syracuse this year (Noel Invitational Tournament)..haha.

      Delete
    5. Susan - Des MoineTuesday, March 14, 2017

      I have to agree about Trading Christmas and The Most Wonderful Time of the Year. I would also throw in November Christmas even though it's not all that much about Christmas. But I have to give them credit - they did pick a lot of really good ones. Unfortunately, 2015 and 2016 didn't really produce a lot of instant classics so it made it very difficult.

      Delete
  7. I tried all day yesterday to do this and it won't come up for me...when I try to do the Christmas bracket...I live in Nevada does anyone out there know...is it not allowed in Nevada...or are others
    having trouble also or do I have to belong to something with Hallmark to enter...it doesn't say so....Thanks for any info anyone can give....

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I had a problem in the afternoon as well with nothing coming up. It seemed to be working by the evening. Try again -- hopefully it will work for you now!

      Delete
    2. i had trouble going through internet explorer but when I use the Google Chrome bracket looks fine.

      Delete
  8. I know that my comment isn't related to this post, but the offical synopsis for "Safe at Home" has just been posted to Hallmark's website! Here is the synopsis from Hallmark Channel's Spring Fling line-up:

    "When her high school boyfriend, a superstar baseball player, returns to town, a single-parent finds the inspiration to reinvent her struggling diner… and revisits the past to find something even better for the future".

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Yes, I've seen it! I'll be creating an individual posting soon!

      Delete
  9. Its insanely challenging! The North Pole match ups are brutal! Its hard to figure out what is in the minds of Hallmarkers! I will love a movie and people will think it was dumb or vice versa! Its almost impossible! Excited to see this begin!

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    1. Susan - Des MoineThursday, March 16, 2017

      I said the same thing about the North Pole movies. Clearly Hallmark spent a lot of money not only on the movies but marketing them as well. But I never heard that many people praise them or say that they're a perennial favorite. They seemed more geared toward kids and I'm not sure if the people taking the polls will vote for them. Definitely interested to find out!

      Delete
  10. There’s a “March Madness”-type contest involving Hallmark Christmas movies now

    Finally! All those hours (and hours and hours) of watching Hallmark Channel holiday movies are about to pay off.

    To the tune of up to $10,000 .

    Hallmark, whose commitment to airing tinsel-tossed romantic Christmas flicks keeps growing like Santa’s belly after an all-night cookie binge, launches its first ever “Meow Madness Christmas Movie Bracket” this weekend.


    A scene from the 2016 Hallmark movie, "Every Christmas Has a Story." It's one of 64 holiday movies facing off in Hallmark's "Meow Madness Christmas Movie Bracket."

    Finally! All those hours (and hours and hours) of watching Hallmark Channel holiday movies are about to pay off.

    To the tune of up to $10,000 .

    Hallmark, whose commitment to airing tinsel-tossed romantic Christmas flicks keeps growing like Santa’s belly after an all-night cookie binge, launches its first ever “Meow Madness Christmas Movie Bracket” this weekend.

    Borrowing a page from a certain college basketball tournament that gets underway each year around this time, Hallmark’s competition sorts 64 movies into four different “regions.” Fans fill out brackets where rounds of head-to-head faceoffs winnow contenders down until only one champion is left standing.

    The winning movie will be announced on April 3, the same day that the national championship basketball game is played (Hallmark’s press materials don’t specifically mention the NCAA or “March Madness” by name anywhere, just in case you were wondering).

    Last year’s college hoops champ was Villanova. This year’s Hallmark champ, which will be announced on April 3, may turn out to be . . . who knows? “A Cookie Cutter Christmas” perhaps? Or maybe “Ice Sculpture Christmas?” Or how about “Fir Crazy?”

    Speaking of crazy, Hallmark knows exactly what it’s doing by riding its holiday movie wave of success like a magic sleigh pulled by eight tiny reindeer. In 2016, it started airing holiday movies round-the-clock on both its Hallmark and Hallmark Movies & Mysteries cable channels on October 28th. When this “Countdown to Christmas” programming event finally ended 64 days later, a whopping 85 million people had tuned in.

    That was up from 80 million the previous year, when the Countdown “only” ran for 61 straight days. It was also good enough to make Hallmark the No. 1 cable channel in the coveted demographic of women aged 25 to 54.

    Brackets will be available at www.hallmarkchannel.com/meow-madness beginning this Sunday, March 12. Entering a bracket offers a chance to win as much as $10,000.

    But you can go to the web site now and find out which movies are in which region, and also check out photos and other materials that could help refresh your memory about the plot of “A Princess for Christmas.” Not to be confused with “A Royal Christmas.” Or “Crown for Christmas.”

    It’s not entirely clear yet what role kittens will play in this event beyond the “Meow Madness” title. But you can be sure they will. Hallmark has found great success in recent years with its “Kitten Bowl” programming on Super Bowl Sunday. And when the (human) Summer Olympics kicked off in Rio de Janeiro last August, so did the “Kitten Summer Games” on Hallmark Channel.

    http://www.ajc.com/entertainment/television/there-march-madness-type-contest-involving-hallmark-christmas-movies-now/Yz4Pq18HyIOILi2WM8oxhL/

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  11. My bracket had Nine Lives for Christmas VS Snow Bride (my absolute 2 favorites!) so early in the second round or so :( I had to go with Snow Bride!

    ReplyDelete
  12. Maybe as a consolation prize for everyone, Hallmark could put out the top four(or more) movie choices on dvd. That way everyone could potentially be a winner. RG

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I already own my final four on dvd. Christmas Card, Trading Christmas, Most Wonderful Time of the Year & Bride for Christmas (also have Hitched for the Holidays & Moonlight + Mistletoe). Some are available in multiple movies packaged together. https://www.amazon.com/Hallmark-Holiday-Collection-Christmas-Thanksgiving/dp/B00O1D3C66/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1490040125&sr=8-3&keywords=bride+for+christmas https://www.amazon.com/Christmas-Collection-Engagement-Moonlight-Mistletoe/dp/B00DNLZQFW/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1490040382&sr=8-4&keywords=moonlight+%26+mistletoe+dvd https://www.amazon.com/Movie-Faith-Family-Holiday-Pack/dp/B00DNLZNYG/ref=pd_sim_74_17?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B00DNLZNYG&pd_rd_r=BSJYE9X2Y294ZZT8DKP9&pd_rd_w=AumeM&pd_rd_wg=HPJF9&psc=1&refRID=BSJYE9X2Y294ZZT8DKP9

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  13. If I was to have my own bracket my sweet 16 would include Boyfriend for Christmas, Trading Christmas, The Most Wonderful Time of the Year, Bride for Christmas, Christmas Ornament, Grandpa for Christmas, Love at the Thanksgiving Day Parade!, Hitched for the Holidays, Christmas Sheperd, Bride for Christmas, Snow Bride, The Bridge 1&2 & Moonlight and Mistletoe

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    1. my winner would be the Christmas Card.

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    2. Since The Christmas Card doesn't appear to have its own section in the Forum I'll ask this here.

      While it is one of my favourites too one thing I don't understand is why Faith enthusiastically accepts Paul's proposal when she is supposedly falling in love with Cody?

      Am I missing something here?

      Delete
    3. well if you see it from Faith's point of view. They have been dating for a while. He purchased the night for just them at the restaurant and at that point Cody still has not expressed much interest in Faith (other than a kiss). He was staying out of it as he did not wish to cause any harm to Faith & Paul's relationship. It is really not hard to believe she would jump at the chance considering she did not know where her relaintionship with Cody was due to Cody being a hard nut to crack and does not express his feelings very well.

      Delete
    4. Susan - Des MoineWednesday, March 22, 2017

      I think she was just waiting so long for the proposal and was wanting it for so long that she just naturally acted positively, or perhaps was just relieved, without thinking too much about it. Like most Hallmark movies, there are often plot-holes galore that you have to ignore in order for the story to have the happy ending. I honestly never liked the way anyone treated Paul in this movie. He wasn't a bad guy and never was vindictive or mean or anything but everyone just bashed him and rolled their eyes at him just because he was different. It always came across as bullying to me which rubs me the wrong way.

      Delete
  14. Susan - Des MoineWednesday, March 22, 2017

    I can't believe that the contest is up to 7 million votes! This has to be great news for Hallmark that people are that interested in their Christmas movies in March!

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    Replies
    1. 8,000,000 now that the voting has ended! That's so many more than I expected. Can't wait to see the results!

      Delete
  15. Susan - Des MoineMonday, March 27, 2017

    Interesting results so far in the First Round. Not too many surprises but at least one big one in my opinion - In the 2016 category, I'm a little shocked that "My Christmas Love" got out-voted by "A Dream of Christmas". At least on this website, "My Christmas Love" was one of the only movies from this past Christmas that was universally praised as being the best of the season so I'm surprised it didn't even make it out of the first round. That pretty much kills my bracket since I had that movie going to the Final Four!

    It looks like people definitely like the more recent movies as every movie (other than The Christmas Card) that was older than 5 years got knocked out in the first round.

    ReplyDelete

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