Pre-Christmas Spirit
The positive feeling or attitude associated with the coming holiday - one may experience it when seeing the lights on the houses in his neighborhood, while finding perfect gifts for his family members, or when he hears holiday tunes playing in the background at one store or another. Some experience pre-Christmas spirit only to find disappointment when Christmas actually comes. This is a case where the hype and anticipation are better than the real thing.
Tracy felt the pre-Christmas spirit through November and December each time she passed by the Christmas section at the department store, but when December 25th came around and she unwrapped a sweater and a blender, she somehow lost the feeling.