Comedies make the best Christmas classics.

Don’t get me wrong; older, sappy movies like It’s a Wonderful Life are timeless, but I just can’t get enough of the holiday comedies. They seem to be a little more realistic.

Two of the best holiday films are comedies, so put aside that Frosty the Snowman cartoon and explore some of the other options out there during winter break.

The movie that made pink bunny footy pajamas and sexy leg lamps pop culture phenomena is possibly one of the best holiday comedies ever created: A Christmas Story.

The 1983 movie tells the story of Ralphie, a little boy in the 1940s who tries to convince his parents that a Red Ryder BB Gun is the perfect Christmas present. They constantly respond with the famous line, “You’ll shoot your eye out,” whenever Ralphie brings up the idea of the gun.

This movie is about growing up and fighting for what you want because, even with the opposition Ralphie faces from his parents, his teacher and even Santa Claus, he still manages to keep asking for that dream gift. This is definitely a feel-good movie that will keep you laughing the entire time. If you’ve never seen it, TBS plays a 24-hour marathon of it on Christmas Eve every year.

Chevy Chase is a comic gem as Clark Griswold in National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation. A “good, old-fashioned family Christmas” is all Clark wants, but he doesn’t quite get that when some uninvited guests show up for the holidays. His obsession with making everything perfect is hysterical. And even when all his good intentions start to go awry, Clark still tries to stay positive.

My favorite scene from this movie is when the Griswolds’ tree is set on fire by Uncle Lewis. Clark loved that tree, and after Uncle Lewis goes on to say the tree was ugly, adding it’s good that the tree is finally out of its misery, Clark starts to lose his mind. But he learns in the end that the best Christmas is the one that creates memories that will last a lifetime with his family by his side.

National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation and A Christmas Story are two of the best comedies to watch during the holidays with lovable characters and memorable, laugh-out-loud scenes. So grab your family members, love them for all their uniqueness and dysfunctionality and prepare to have an evening full of laughter.