2025 Christmas Card and Newsletter

It seems that every year I receive fewer and fewer Christmas cards.   While I totally get that Christmastime is an exceedingly busy time of  many commitments;  I consider Christmas card sending and receiving as one of my favorite parts of the season and you should worry if the day ever comes that I don't send them.    I enjoy thinking about aspects of my upcoming Christmas cards in snippets all through the year.   I consider all sorts of questions, like what picture(s) might I use, what tidbits might I include, how to structure the newsletter, who  I should purge  from my list after I haven't heard from them in a few years, how I can make it more interesting, etc.    In all fairness, I don't usually DO anything about my Christmas cards until late November, but I usually already have a good idea of what I will do by that time.   

This was another entire year with one of our family members on a mission, which meant no whole family photos to include.   Other missionary years included 2017, 2021, 2023, and now 2025.  I've approached this in different ways before, like the year we just put in a part-family photo and included photos of the missionary on the back, and the one time we commisioned an artist on Etsy to create this artistic version, but I knew early on that we would just do a collage this year.  I found this template on Canva and from there it was just a matter of finding the right photo for each person. I changed up the design a bit too and had it printed at a local print shop.      

Here's a little about each photo and why we chose it.   
The photo of Glen and I was taken at the Cliffs of Moher in Ireland. I think the background is lovely and it's a cute photo of us.  
The photo of Spence and Kiwi was taken by his request one day when he needed a photo for a work spotlight.  I knew instantly that I would include that one in the Christmas card.  
The photo of Cam and family was taken by a photographer friend of theirs near their apartment in Birmingham shortly before they moved.  I love how these turned out.   
Graduating from BYU was definitely one of Emma's big highlights of the year, so using a grad photo was a no-brainer for me.  
Adam had A LOT of mountain climbing selfies in the camera roll, but I like this one of him at the Provo City Center temple the best. 
There were other pics I liked better of Ellie, but I wanted one of her by herself that showed a little glimpse of the beautiful area she's serving in.  This one standing at Ventura Harbor (I think) fit the bill perfectly!  

The photo of me with Lucie and Oliver was taken in Rhode Island on Halloween.   It was one of my favorites that included them!  
I love this photo of Ellie and her companion, Hermana B, who is from Australia.  They get asked all the time if they are sisters.  
This photo of Glen and I was taken in the Dolomites.   
This *almost complete* family photo was taken this past summer when Cam came to town.   I was super sad that Glen and I didn't hop in the picture as well, otherwise that one may have ended up on the front of our card.  It's also missing Garrett and Ellie though, so it's all good.  
I like how this photo of Adam, Glen, and I at a BYU football game this past fall shows a glimpse of how much of our life is currently spent down in Provo!  

For the newsletter, I just ended up purchasing a template on Etsy, when I couldn't find anything I liked on Canva.   I included a quick rundown on each person and also had it printed at a local print shop.   

  I have been gradually whittling my list down over the years as I've been receiving fewer and fewer cards in return and this year I'm down below 200.   It makes me sad taking people off my list, but when I don't hear from them for a few years in a row, or if I know they've moved and make no effort to give me their new address, I usually take them off.  Good friends and relatives being the exceptions.  I leave them on regardless of whether they send anything or not.  

 I had so much fun making my own cards, that, once again, I volunteered to design and print some for my Mom as well.   The background in this photo with all of us siblings and Mom  in the Dolomites almost looks fake, it's so stunning, but I can attest that it's 100% real!   

So, in other words, my obsession is still going strong and you can find me excitedly running to the mailbox every single day to see what the haul is.   

What are your thoughts on Christmas cards?  I know many people choose not to send them and don't really get that excited about receiving them.    If you don't send them, why not?  I'd love to hear what you think!  

 Click here to see Christmas cards and newsletter from past years.   

MERRY CHRISTMAS TO YOU AND YOURS!  

A {Mostly} Predictable Christmas

Happy New Year, my friends!    I just dropped Ellie off at the MTC earlier today (and I will post about that later), but first I need a little distraction from my complicated feelings and wanted to do a little recap of our Christmas.   If you've been following along with this blog for very long, you can likely predict that the excitement level of this post will be somewhat low and the content fairly predictable, but I figure if you're still following along with this blog 17 years after I started it, you know what you're getting!  Haha! 

I already posted about our Christmas cards this year, but here is a glimpse of the the other Christmas cards I designed AND had printed (yes, I'm that obsessed).   The top ones were for Cami, who had a pretty crazy Christmas season of Garrett working nights most of the month, combined with a lot of sickness that knocked them out for a while (and required a couple of scary ER visits for poor Oliver with a case of the croup).    She knew there was no way they were getting out before Christmas, so we just embraced the New Year theme! 

I also designed and printed my Mom's cards. I felt a little badly that there were no photos of her with any other grandkids to include, but, to be fair, I asked everyone before throwing in the pictures of my family.  No one else had any to offer, so it is what it is, and my sister, H, and I  are already on a quest to do better this year  taking pictures with the other families when they come to town.  

Christmastime at our house always includes making a lot of goodies, but this year we decided to jump into the whole "neighbor gift" tradition that is very much a thing here in Utah.   We brought goodies to friends in other places, but with our ward being so compact here in Utah, it's much more of a widespread tradition and it's fun to see the creative gifts and treats that people came up with.   We opted for white chocolate toffee popcorn--a recipe I got from my friend, Lona, in PA.  It was easy enough to make in large quantities and we packaged it up cute and made about 25 deliveries on Christmas Eve. 

It was fun to spend an evening with my nieces, Lauren (at BYU-ID) and McKenzie (at BYU), before bringing them to the airport to head home for Christmas break.  They knew it was their last chance to see Ellie for 18ish months, so they enjoyed their time together! 

We almost dispensed with the Christmas Eve pajama tradition this year, but after some persuasive arguments from a couple of the kids, we pulled it together very last minute.  

I think everyone really ended up liking their Snuggies and I will be hard-pressed to dispense with this tradition before Ellie is home, so we will be keeping the tradition alive for another couple years at least! 

We couldn't find baby-size Snuggies, so we sent Lucie and Oliver pajamas in matching colors at least.    Garrett is a big fan of his, while Cami finds hers a little too toasty to wear much. 

To be fair, I can't wear mine to bed for the same reason, but I do enjoy wearing mine in the evenings and especially when I first wake up in the morning when the house is colder.   

I do have to admit that Christmas pajama photos are pretty fun and we've had a lot of epic ones over the years.  This one ranks up there with some of the best!  

After pajama opening, we did our traditional Christmas Eve devotional with songs and scriptures. My Mom, Heather, and Nate joined us for this part of the night.   You can find a printable version of the devotional books we use here.  We usually read all the scriptures and sing just the first verses  of the songs, then Glen finishes off the night with showing us this video and him testifying about how we can let Christ into our lives better. 

On Christmas morning, we made and enjoyed this delicious breakfast....

Emma made a gluten free version of our favorite Orange Breakfast Bread, I made bacon, and Adam and Glen made eggs and got the berries ready.  It was all delicious and I daresay we looked pretty cute eating our Christmas breakfast in our Snuggies!  

Later we opened presents, during which I took almost no photos.  But I did capture the beautiful Scandinavian heart baskets Emma made for us and we smiled seeing this sweet picture of Lucie, so happy that she got the only thing she wanted from Santa...some pink sparkly shoes!  

What else did we do?  

Ellie and I did some shoveling, since Glen is still recovering from his recent appendectomy.   Adam hit up some Christmas parties wearing this epic outfit. 

Speaking of epic outfits....Adam's BYU friend group were all looking pretty snazzy at this party!  

Oh, and this part of the post is all out of order, but I had to throw in something slightly unexpected for you.  This was a glimpse of our Christmas Eve dinner, ordered to-go from Cheesecake Factory.   It may look like alcoholic beverages on our table for the occasion, but, rest assured....

It was just a non-alcoholic butterscotch beer taste testing we decided to try!   It was our first time having butterscotch beer (besides the butterbeer from Universal Studios Harry Potter World).  I think it was pretty unanimous that it was all a bit too sweet for us to buy on any regular occasion, but #1 (the one we'd gotten from Costco) was the one we liked the best. 

 So there you have it...our very boring, but wonderful Christmas festivities.   These days I don't even want non-boring.   Having our college kids home, a missionary in the house, and my Mom, brother, and sister here was perfect.  The only thing that would have made it more perfect, was if Cami, Garrett, Lucie, and Oliver could have been here too, but we had {most of} them for Thanksgiving, so we will be grateful for that!  

Happy New Year!  

Our Christmas Cards

MERRY CHRISTMAS, FRIENDS!  It's been a crazy few weeks getting ready for Christmas AND getting Ellie ready for her mission (which just began this week), but it's time, once again, to reveal this year's version of the Christmas card and newsletter! 

I keep thinking that at some point I'll get tired of Christmas cards and all the work they entail, but that day has not come yet.   Not only do I like hearing from long lost friends and relatives through snail mail, but I absolutely love the whole process of sending and creating them.  This year I was excited to have a photo of our whole family together, something that is rare in this missionary era of our family, where we go entire years with kids out in the field.   We bent over backward to get this photo together in the less than 24 hours we had all together after Adam arrived home from his mission and before the B family started heading back to Alabama (you can read more about here). 

I designed the Christmas cards on Canva this year and had them printed at a local print shop.  I've been trying to be better about supporting local businesses, and I like the more reasonable pricing too!    

Here's the back:  

 I've noticed that Christmas newsletters have been falling by the wayside of late, with probably fewer than one in ten of the cards we receive containing one, but I, in all my nerdiness, still love creating them.  Sometimes I worry that they're TMI and perhaps contain a bit too much of the rosy posy of our lives, but I love it anyway.  

Here is ours from this year, in all its hand-drawn glory.  I finished it up while Glen was in the hospital getting his appendix out and had them printed at a different local print-shop that I recently discovered.   I felt very much like a geek sending these out, but, when it comes to Christmas cards, I am pretty geeky, so it is what it is.   

 

 So there you have it...the 2024 version of our Christmas card and newsletter.     And here's a glimpse of the cards we've received as of today.   I imagine that we'll fill up the door next week and spill our collection onto the office door. 

See here for past years' Christmas cards and newsletters.  

Hope you have had a happy and blessed Christmas!  Thanks for following along with our adventures here on the blog! 
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17 Years of Christmas Cards and our 2023 Card and Newsletter

After 16+ years of blogging, you might have noticed some trends here on the blog. For instance...though I have not a single shred of wit in real life, I sometimes think I'm wildly funny here on the blog and I post silly things that make no sense to anyone other than....me. Also, I have a real problem with using the blog as an outlet when I'm feeling upset or hurt. I usually end up editing or deleting those posts later, but a lot of you regular readers have probably seen a few of my PMS-driven rants pop up and then quickly disappear over the years. And last, but not least...almost every year I post something about Christmas cards and how much I love them sending and receiving them.

Sooooooo...in the spirit of all three of my blogging trends....allow me to rant about how annoying it is that I'm still not funny, still get PMS despite not having a uterus, which means I can't predict when it will hit anymore, and how I still get so dang obsessed with Christmas cards every single year. I literally work on getting the cards sent out before buying gifts a lot of years (like this one)!   

Here is a glimpse of this year's card....

With Adam being on a mission for the entirety of 2023, we never got a family picture, so this collage was the best I could come up with.

I had great fun creating this newsletter with a template I'd purchased on Etsy. In years' past, I've mostly created our newsletters from scratch on either Microsoft Publisher or Photoshop, but this year I needed a creative boost, hence the Etsy help. I was happy with the way it turned out.

Last but not least, I FINALLY got a bee in my bonnet to gather all of our Christmas cards and compile it into one big collage. I wasn't able to locate any from pre-2007, but with a good bit of sleuthing, I was able to find them all from the last 17 years at least.

Wow!  It was kind of crazy to see a little glimpse of all these years in one place.   From cancer, epilepsy, unemployment, the failing health and death of a parent, mental health struggles, to a wedding, a grandbaby, 11 years of homeschooling, 3 missionaries, 5 high school graduations, a whole lot of adventures, etc... these years represent A WHOLE LOT of stress, heartache, struggles, and also deep deep joy.

A closer look at previous years' cards: 
2025 (the red collage card and a SIMPLE SPOTLIGHT newsletter)
2024 (the simple card and the HAND-DRAWN newsletter) 
2022 (the card full of regrets and TMI newsletter)
2021  (the artistic card and NEWSY newsletter)
2020 (the covid update)
2019 ( the simple card and the SECRET FILES newsletter)

2018 (the super small airmail card and the ANNUAL REPORT newsletter)
2017 (the basic, but pretty fall leaf card and a  GAZETTE newsletter)
2016 (the Jefferson memorial card and the CANCELED newsletter)
2015 (the card with a pic from a Lord of the Rings filming site in NZ and funny CATALOG newsletter)
2014 (the card where we look a little disheveled and DICTIONARY newsletter)
2013 (silly mustache/pajama card and GAZETTE newsletter)
2012 (middle of cancer card and FAIRY TALE newsletter)
2011 (Alleluia silhouette card and GOOFY newsletter on the back) 
2010  (letter here) (the card where 2 of us were photoshopped and NUMB3RS newsletter)
2009 (the professional photograph card and the TRIFOLD CHURCH PROGRAM newsletter)
2008 ( card in fall leaves and WANTED POSTER newsletter)
2007 (my early attempts at graphic design card )

 

Thanks for coming along for the ride!  HAPPY NEW YEAR!!!  

leading up to christmas

As mentioned in my previous blogpost, this Christmas has felt a little more scattered than usual.  I felt more like I was in survival mode than even the usual chaos zone leading up to Christmas.   I'm still stress eating too much junk, having trouble sleeping, and still fighting off a variety of  bugs...including a cold sore that arrived just a few days before Christmas Day.   Having said that...we did accomplish some fun Christmasy things along the way.  Here's a  little glimpse at the last few days leading up to Christmas this year...

We had a little treat making party with Emma, Ellie, my sister, and Mom at my Mom's house...

Emma tempered the chocolate and Emma and Ellie made the truffles...

Heather made the caramels, Mom was the ingredient gatherer, and I was on fudge duty.  I do make a mean fudge, though this year's was a little more "decorative" than usual with my helpers adding sprinkles and marshmallows to the top.   If you like a creamy delicious fudge that's not as sickeningly sweet as most, then try my recipe.  I spent several years getting it "just right" and am quite proud of it, though I do tend to eat too much of it when it's around.  

As you know, I LOVE Christmas cards.  Love getting them, love sending them, love thinking about them.   I was a little less on-top of things this year than usual, but I am happy to say that they were all sent before Christmas at least. 

I do my Christmas card sending in phases every year.   Phase #1 is  the bulk of the cards, phase #2 are the people I need to doublecheck addresses on, phase #3 are the locals, and phase #4 are the people I need to spend a little more personal time on.    All in all, I sent about 230 this year, but likely will send a few fewer next year as there are quite a few people on my list I haven't heard from in several years.    

In case you didn't know or didn't remember, this past summer I went as the Trip Mom on an HXP (Humanitarian Experience) trip to Thailand with Ellie.   It was a life-changing experience for both of us and I feel so blessed to have been able to be a part of it.  This past week, one of my Thailand "kids"  had a mission farewell that I was thrilled to be able to attend (one of the perks of living in Utah now).   His decision to serve a mission was solidified while he was in Thailand and I felt like we had a small glimpse into him opening his heart to the idea while we were on the trip. 

Elder C is on his way to Florida now and we loved being able to hear him share his testimony with us...

As part of this mini-reunion for the farewell, we hosted a few people at our house for a couple nights.  Somehow the hair bleaching went down at our house when we were out of the house for all of 45 minutes.  😑

It was great to see them again and remember what a special time that was for us...

Last but not least, after spending 3 weeks in a row with Lucie, I was feeling very deprived in those couple weeks leading up to Christmas.  I missed my "Cici" (her self-picked nickname) snuggles, the storytimes, the silly singalongs, and just feeling like I was making a small difference again.   I clung to every picture Cami sent me and delighted anytime they had a chance to Facetime...especially when Lucie asked me to read her a book over the phone or to sing her a song.  I really do love being a Gigi and can't wait for a new little one to join the mix soon. 

Hope all you, dear readers, had wonderful holiday filled with many happy memories.   Stay tuned for a post on the actual Christmas holiday coming soon...

Thirty Years of Us!

 On a cold, but sunny day in Denver, on December 18, 1993, a couple of young kids got married.

 

Here are a few random facts about our early relationship and wedding:

-We met at BYU.

-I was officially introduced to Glen when I was going on a double date and the other guy canceled super last minute.  My brother offered to find a replacement date for my friend and came back with Glen.   He dated my friend for a while, then she went on a mission and the rest is history.  Haha! 

-Both of our birthdays are on the 25th of the month (me in April, him in June), so he asked me to marry him on September 25th.  We likely would have married on the 25th as well, except the 25th doesn't really work in December. 

-My aunt made my wedding dress and it cost right about $100 total.

-I truly didn't care about my wedding colors.   I originally picked peach and green (it was the early 90's, so don't judge!) and happily changed it to burgundy and green after my Mom informed me that those colors were hard to find in the wintertime.

-Actually, I really didn't care about many of the details of my wedding and I went along with whatever my Mom and Glen's Mom told me would be easiest.   We even had a potato bar for the luncheon, despite me not liking potatoes back then. 

-We jumped in the car the day after we got married and drove to Minnesota with my family for the reception and to spend Christmas with them.   I feel bad for my younger siblings in the back of the car with us. 

-It was bitterly cold in Minnesota the week we were there (like -40* with windchill type of cold) and Glen very quickly redacted every naive statement he'd ever made about how growing up in Colorado meant he knew all about cold. 

-The first place we lived together after we got married, in South Orem, was the sketchiest neighborhood we lived in in our whole married life. Police were in our little culdesac on a semi-regular basis. 

-Glen's first job out of college was in Baltimore, Maryland...thus beginning our 25 years of living on the East Coast. 

-Our first three kids were born in three different states.  Spence in Utah, Cami in Maryland, then Emma, Adam, and Ellie were all born in Virginia.

  We were certainly pretty clueless about life when we got married, but we were filled with a deep love and naive hope for the future.   It's probably a good thing we couldn't really glimpse the future at that point, though, because I think we would have been pretty petrified at some of the things we'd be facing together.   It turns out though, that we make a pretty good team and while our family is far from perfect, it's perfect for us.  

Our official 30th anniversary celebration was the trip in October/November that I have yet to blog about (but will eventually), but we enjoyed celebrating today in our own low-key kind of way.  

We started off with a long walk (6-1/2 miles),

Then stopped for a delicious  brunch at a place called Communal,

 

 

 Then, just as we've done every anniversary for the last 30 years (except when it falls on a Sunday), we went Christmas shopping.    We also found a Giving Machine at the mall we were at and took a little stop there. 

Weirdly, I'm not sure we'd ever been up close and personal with a Giving Machine before and we were impressed with how it works.  Can you guess what I picked to give?   

After a few pitstops, we headed home where we had a boat load of Christmas cards waiting for us in our mailbox!     Any of you who's been following along with this blog for long, knows that I am quite a Christmas card aficionado and it made me smile!   

And with that, Glen had to skedaddle down to the Outpost.  😐

The trip was a grand way to celebrate, but today was a perfect low-key way to commemorate the beginnings of our family.  I'm grateful to have this man by my side through life and into the eternities.