Christmas Cousins

Seth was tasked with making a list to choose what Hallmark Christmas movies we will be covering this year. He showed up late. And listless (and, also, without a list). But we persevere with the help of the Christmas Aficionado and pick some great ones that we'll be covering (assuming Seth actually watches them)...stay tuned!

This is exactly what we were looking for.

Seth comes to the table with a list of activities. Real activities. Christmas activities! Fall activities! That he will be doing to make his season merry and bright and to move up some grades from Kringle Kindergarten.

And the episode ends with a much-needed update on the cast of the ’80s sitcom, “Small Wonder,” because why not. Of course, Joe @christmasaficionado knew everything about this show...

Cousin Seth loves a good challenge but hates most pumpkin items. Cousin Chad loves watching Seth eat items he hates.

We go through some intriguing new TJs fall finds in hopes of finding ones we like...and hopefully some that Seth finds disgusting...join us for the fun!

It is September. Autumn is basically here.

It is time:

Pumpkin. Beer. Tasting.

We did it live on Christmas Aficionado's channel with Seth, Joe and Lee (and surprise guest Bran)!

Season 31 is here , Christmas Cousins (yes, 31, Seth even triple checked out math)! 

We arrived with an agenda, an outline and the almost-professional intention of previewing our upcoming fall episodes while laying out Cousin Seth’s next seasonal semester: what exactly must our former Jolly Junior accomplish to advance from Kringle Kindergarten to Festive First Grade on his long and winding road toward Christmas High School?

It was an excellent plan. It lasted approximately three minutes...until Cousin Seth started talking.

One life update led to another, and suddenly our carefully constructed fall preview was tossed aside as we discussed Seth's love life. And because this is the Christmas Cousins and apparently boundaries are merely suggestions, before long we were meeting Lindsay herself—live on the show.

So forget the syllabus. Forget the lesson plan. Today we’re talking Seth, Lindsay, life updates, love and whatever else happened once we completely surrendered control of the episode.

It’s the quintessential Christmas Cousins show: we came prepared with a topic and discovered reality was considerably more entertaining.

We promise the fall festivities, seasonal education and Cousin Seth’s matriculation toward Festive First Grade will resume shortly. But some breaking Cousin news simply demands the floor. 

Well, we were supposed to be on hiatus.

But then we realized something important: this journey was never just about helping Cousin Seth discover Christmas. It's become something much bigger. The mission now is to help Seth embrace all the seasons and find joy year-round.

And what says summer more than cole slaw?

Unfortunately, we've uncovered a serious problem. Cousin Seth does not like cole slaw.

Naturally, this has become our latest emergency intervention.

So we're taking a hiatus from our hiatus for a very special Summer Spectacular.

After a few months away, the Christmas Cousins return with enough updates, loose ends, and deeply questionable food decisions to fill several episodes—but good judgment has never been our brand.

We begin, naturally, with Cousin Seth: life in South Haven, the latest developments in his burgeoning coffee empire, and the obligatory love-life update the international community has been demanding. Then Joe the Christmas Aficionado checks in with tales of high-end whiskey acquisitions, new toys, fresh memorabilia, and other completely essential investments.

Meanwhile, the Prince of Pittsburgh Cousin Lee would simply like to know why Seth apparently refuses to sell him coffee. But Lee has brought leverage: a container of coleslaw delivered to Seth’s house for the long-awaited Christmas Cousins Coleslaw Challenge. Unfortunately, it then sat outside in the summer heat for roughly five hours.

Cousin Seth already considers fresh coleslaw an affront to human dignity. Will he now eat the warm, possibly sentient version? Absolutely not—probably. But this is Cousin Seth, so no one knows until the cameras roll.

It’s an overflowing return episode packed with coffee, romance, whiskey, consumerism, simmering merchandise grievances, and one tub of cabbage that may now qualify as a biological weapon.

It’s time once again for the annual Christmas Cousins summer hiatus episode.

Yes—even the Christmas Cousins occasionally step away from the microphones, drink something cold, attempt to touch grass, and try to remember what life is like outside the holiday season.

Before we disappear for a little summer break, Cousin Chad and Cousin Seth sit down for one final seasonal check-in:

• How’s Seth doing?
• How’s life at Recharge Coffee?
• Any big summer plans?
• What’s coming next for the podcast?
• And perhaps most importantly… how long until we’re talking Christmas again?

It’s a relaxed catch-up episode full of updates, laughs, mild chaos, and the comforting realization that no matter how warm it gets outside, Christmas is never actually that far away around here.

We’ll miss you all—but don’t worry. Christmas in July will be here before you know it, and the cousins will return rested, refreshed, and probably still deeply concerned about Seth’s progress.

See you soon, everybody. 🎄☀️

Kringle Kindergarten Part II: Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas...This One Has To Go Right. Right?

The first official round of Kringle Kindergarten has concluded… and the results can only be described as SETHACULAR.

The assignments seemed simple enough:

• Send out three Christmas cards (he sent one)
• Color a Christmas mug (unfinished)
• Complete a Christmas word search (shockingly excellent — genuine A+ work)
• Watch and explain a Bluey Christmas episode

Now, technically, Seth may have watched the Bluey episode. Or possibly the wrong one. Or perhaps part of one. At this time, MIT scientists, physicists, and several Christmas-adjacent engineers are still reviewing the evidence. No definitive conclusions have been reached.

So after what many are calling a “challenging” kindergarten debut, Seth has been assigned a new task: the beloved classic Emmet Otter’s Jug-Band Christmas.

Surely this one is foolproof, right?
Simple. Cozy. Charming. Manageable.

…Right?

Join the cousins as Seth gives his thoughts, reports back on what he learned, attempts to absorb the Christmas vibes, and fights to prove he’s finally ready to move on to Grade One.

It’s a question people around the world have quietly wondered:

What is Cousin Seth actually like in person? What would it be like to actually meet him?

In this very special episode, Cousin Lee—aka the Prince of Pittsburgh—and his better half, Maria, take the ultimate holiday-adjacent journey: a full-on pilgrimage to South Haven, Michigan, home of the one and only Recharge Coffee… and, of course, Cousin Seth himself.

They surprise Seth, spend an evening and morning with him, and return with a full field report:

• What’s South Haven really like?
• What’s Recharge Coffee like in real life?
• And most importantly… what is Seth actually like when the microphones aren’t on?

This is Embedded with Cousin Seth—a boots-on-the-ground investigation into the man, the myth, the barista.

The results may surprise you. Or confirm everything you already suspected.

Either way… the report is in. 

Welcome to a new chapter in Cousin Seth’s journey: Kringle Kindergarten.

Yes, after the events of the now-infamous trial, Seth begins his next phase of seasonal education the only way the Cousins know how—by assigning him a Bluey Christmas episode to watch, study, and review in his own… unmistakable style.

What follows is a full breakdown of the episode as only Seth can deliver: thoughtful, unpredictable, and occasionally veering into places no one saw coming.

And in a true “miracle of miracles” moment, Seth has also completed a long-awaited task—he has finally sent Cousin Mary her Christmas card. In April.

Is he extremely late for 2025?
Or somehow early for 2026?
At this point, we’re just asking questions.

It’s a fun, slightly chaotic episode marking the beginning of Seth’s Kindergarten era—with lessons, progress, and just enough confusion to suggest we’re exactly where we’re supposed to be.

Class is officially in session.