Now that the Thanksgiving holiday is behind us, most of us have diverted our holiday attention to Christmas. I’m sure you’ve already been to a retail store or restaurant where they are playing Christmas music, and one of the most beloved songs during this holiday season is “The Twelve Days of Christmas.”

That song contains a list of 364 gifts to be given, and those gifts don’t come cheap. According to a recent Associated Press news story, buying everything from those 12 drummers drumming to that partridge in a pear tree will cost you $96,824.

That’s quite a bit of holiday scratch, but what’s even more interesting about that price is that it represents an increase of 10.8% over last year’s cost of the same items!

Now, if you’re wondering where in the heck the Associated Press got these figures, then you’re not alone. Apparently, each year PNC Wealth Management puts out its annual Christmas Price Index. Historically, the Christmas Price Index has mirrored the national Consumer Price Index -- but not this year.

This year, the PNC Christmas Price Index grew 9.2% from last year, compared with just a 1.1% increase in the much broader Consumer Price Index. More importantly, this year, PNC reports it’s going to cost me $6,294.03 to hire nine ladies dancing -- that’s a 15% increase over what I paid last year.

Hey, who says inflation isn’t real?