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Getting Creative with our Christmas Cards

December 13th, 2011

I love getting photos of all my friends kids via their Christmas cards, it’s a great way to keep up with what’s going on in their lives. Mr Chiots and I don’t have children, so we don’t have to send out the obligatory family photo for Christmas. Each year I spend all year trying come up with something creative to do. That’s the one problem with having a really great card one year, then people expect it every subsequent year! This year, we decided that since our camper was a big part of our summer, it should be featured on our holiday card.


My original idea was to have the camper parked in a snowy field with us sitting around a fire nearby. However, we have had no measurable snow, that means I had to come up with something slightly different because it was getting close to the cut off time for ordering the cards.


I spent the night before last outside for about an hour at dusk taking a variety of photos trying to get just the the right ones for our card. Of course there was a self portrait or two that didn’t make the final card.


I can’t wait to get the final cards in the mail. Each year, it’s pure joy to address them and send them off to my friends & family. Coming up with a creative card is one of the things I really enjoy doing for Christmas. I’ll show you what the final product looks like next week after we receive the final cards.

Do you send out family photo cards, handmade cards, pre-made cards from the store, e-cards, or no cards during the holidays?

17 Comments to “Getting Creative with our Christmas Cards”
  1. Kathi Cook on December 13, 2011 at 7:22 am

    Very cute! I love those old fashioned colored lights. That’s what we had on our tree when I was growing up.Can’t wait to see the chosen one.

    Reply to Kathi Cook's comment

  2. Sofie Dittmann on December 13, 2011 at 8:12 am

    LOVE those. We never send cards, and over the years most people have given up sending us any, which is OK w/ me. Makes me feel less guilty about not sending any, and many of those we got were of the “mass” kind anyway – you know, just signatures on a pre-printed store-bought card. :)

    Reply to Sofie Dittmann's comment

  3. Bonnie on December 13, 2011 at 8:58 am

    This year it is a family photo, two of them are grown and they will do their own thing soon. Other years it varies from handmade to store bought to not getting one out. My mother hand makes cards each year.

    Reply to Bonnie's comment

  4. tj on December 13, 2011 at 9:24 am

    …You two are adorable! As well as that camper of yours! :o)

    …Can’t wait to see which one made the cut.

    …We haven’t sent ours out as of yet but I guess I better get on the ball, you think? I would love to start creating our own Christmas cards instead of purchasing ’em…maybe next year.

    …Have a great day!

    …Blessings :o)

    Reply to tj's comment

  5. daisy on December 13, 2011 at 9:24 am

    Love the camper all decked out in holiday lights!

    We send standard store-bought cards. I tend to put my energy into other things at holiday time.

    Reply to daisy's comment

  6. goatpod2 on December 13, 2011 at 9:32 am

    We usually send out pre-made ones from the store but I do make homemade ones with stamps and markers for friends that I receive cards from.

    Amy

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  7. kristin @ going country on December 13, 2011 at 9:43 am

    I don’t send cards at all. I like receiving them, but don’t send them. And if it’s an obligation once one has children, well then, I fail.

    Reply to kristin @ going country's comment

  8. Allison on December 13, 2011 at 9:46 am

    Those are GREAT photos and I totally know what you mean. Each year I send out a card of the horses out in the snow and each year I have to make sure it is just as nice as last year…..and THIS YEAR I have to figure out how to add a child into the card!!

    Reply to Allison's comment

  9. Daedre Craig on December 13, 2011 at 9:58 am

    The last two are my favorite….very creative!

    Reply to Daedre Craig's comment

  10. igardendaily on December 13, 2011 at 12:05 pm

    Love the photos and even though I have children I don’t always do the “family/kid” photo and try to do something creative as well. I LOVE the last photo…is that the one you chose?

    Reply to igardendaily's comment

    • Susy on December 13, 2011 at 12:36 pm

      None of these photos made the cut, though it was hard to choose because there were a few good ones.

      Reply to Susy's comment

  11. Michelle Wells on December 13, 2011 at 1:07 pm

    Beautiful! This year I am doing a Christmas anti-letter, lol. Some letters turn into a brag fest but this is a short of joke letter, things like… “Our 19 month old Sammy is a verifiable genius, giving long discourses on many topics If only we were up to her level and could understand what she is saying.” Or, “After the flooding in September, we enjoyed five quiet days at home as a family. No annoying sounds of a water pump turning on or the refrigerator running. Michelle decided to try her hand at grilling pizza! Luckily the neighbors heard and brought over some MRE’s.”

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  12. anotherkindofdrew on December 13, 2011 at 3:08 pm

    So, three years ago I suggested to my wife that we not send Christmas cards. I couldn’t justify the use of disposable materials, financial resources (for postage), and time, at the time. She agreed although reluctantly, me thinks. Even though I am the one that would have written them she still seemed to think we should send them out. The following year I questioned myself wondering if I decided not to send them based on a obligation to the “eco-conscious” babble I had quickly become. I began to research recycled cards, alternative cards, etc. And thus began my REAL thought. Was I really sacrificing the art of hand-written letters and genuine sentiment because of a few stamps? (I had found lovely recycled cards and had already bought bulk recycled envelopes). So this year we sent out cards to about 22 families. We sent out 45 personalized email cards. And we created a list of about 200 folks we would just email greetings to.

    As for interesting things that came of this? We developed a tradition with 3 other couples that we would buy a card (which we did last year) and send it to them with our message. Then the following year they would write a message in it and send it back to us. Next year we’ll add to it and send it back. It will be a Christmas journal of sorts between our families.

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  13. 1916home.net on December 13, 2011 at 4:10 pm

    Im late on my cards this year. Yours are PERFECT. Those are very professional. I could see them for sale in my local arts and crafts store.

    Reply to 1916home.net's comment

  14. itchbay on December 13, 2011 at 6:00 pm

    I love the photos!

    I also enjoy making my own cards, but mine are usually more crafty. This years are still in the works.

    Reply to itchbay's comment

  15. Beegirl on December 13, 2011 at 9:52 pm

    So cute Suzy! No kids here either. I should really do better with our cards. So I’ll admit.. This year.. I got mine out of the $1 bin at the craft store. Not feeling so festive now are they? Nope… Sigh. Love the camper shots!

    Reply to Beegirl's comment

  16. KimH on December 14, 2011 at 6:17 am

    Our Christmas cards are usually a photo card of the family under the Christmas tree, Christmas morning ,the year before. Our kids are all grown up though 2 are living with us right now/still.. I havent printed one though I need to get on the ball..

    Usually by this time of year, I’ve gotten 15 or 20 cards.. I’ve gotten 2. Looks like a whole bunch of folks have decided to forgo them this year.

    Reply to KimH's comment

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This is a daily journal of my efforts to cultivate a more simple life, through local eating, gardening and so many other things. We used to live in a small suburban neighborhood Ohio but moved to 153 acres in Liberty, Maine in 2012.

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