December 9th - Christmas Cards

Oh, my goodness. 

I read Sarah's description of this perfect woman, 

and I laughed.

Hopefully you'll get a good laugh too.

Start Quote

There is a woman at large

- charmed and dangerous. 

She waves her clever hand over a room 

and it looks like a page from House Beautiful.

She waves her creative hand over the fruits of the earth

and a feast appears nightly.

Her thumb is green, her herb vinegar is curing,

her potpourri recipe is sought, her PTA cupcakes are from scratch,

her Halloween costumes are legendary, she still wears size 8.

Her celebrity lawyer husband adores her, 

her five summa cum children think she's laude.

She finished her holiday shopping, 

wrapping, and sending in November.

Now she's turning her attention to making her own 

New Year's Eve confetti...

I know this because I've just received her annual Christmas letter. 

Be forewarned. 

It's speeding it's way to your house.

[We see all these wonderful things now not just in Christmas cards,

now we see them all over all the time.

And let's be honest, these women are amazing.

And we are not saying they are not.

And we're not saying that they should 

stop being themselves or stop sharing.

We're just saying that...]

This woman must be stopped.

She undermines our domestic tranquility.

She threatens the common good...

Many of us react to Christmas letters as if they were 

fingernails on the blackboard of our brains...

End Quote

But they don't have to be. 

Sarah suggests that you start with writing a letter of your own. 

Make it "warm, witty, and authentic". 

If you want to send it out, do it.

If you want to keep it to yourself, that's fine too.

Write about what happened this year, 

what changes you made, how you've grown.

Christmas cards don't have to be a big deal. 

Robbie and I haven't sent them in years, 

not for lack of wanting to do them, just lacking time and money.

And when you get Christmas cards, and you see the perfect pictures with the perfect families with the card you know cost more than $1 plus the envelope plus the stamp...or worse, handmade...

Just be happy for them. 

Remember that every single woman has struggles and trials,

no one's life is as perfect as it seems.

Do you think they're sending you a card in order to 

rub their awesomeness in your face?

No! 

They just want to share a little holiday cheer 

and say hello and I love you.

Changing your attitude is difficult, but possible. 

And it makes things like receiving Christmas cards so much better.

"Just remember that your family and friends don't live edited lives.

You needn't either."

Side note, this also goes for if you don't get a Christmas card. 

I think I get maybe 5 a year, and I have always been sad. 

I want one from every friend! I love getting mail.

So this year I'm going to be happy and grateful for the ones I receive, and not let the ones I don't get get me down.

When Sarah says "This woman must be stopped", 

I can't help think she must mean the part inside of us

that can't be happy for someone else because our card isn't "as good."

***

Gratitude Journal

***

1) The Ward Christmas Party is over. Thank goodness. It's not that it wasn't good, it's that my kids were absolute monsters. I wanted so badly to get a picture of our family with Santa, since this is the only time I'm making to see him, and because it was free, and we were so close. He had just walked in when I called it quits. I don't know if they had a rule about Santa, and they let the families with nursery kids and sunbeams go first, if they didn't they should have. Hopefully next year they will behave and then we can stay. 

2) Family pictures are over. I can't wait to see them! But I'm so glad they're over.

3) My friend helping me do laundry the other day so I had plenty of clothes to choose from for pictures. I wasn't sure what colors my mom was doing, so because everything was clean I packed everything nice we had for the kids. I can't wait to show you pictures, I was so happy picking clothes out. Purple, blue, gray and red, yay!

4) Five adults vs three kids trying to wrangle them to get ready and smile for pictures, I like those odds.

5) Little girls and cute curly hair.