Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Merry Christmas 2010

Dear friends and family,

Even though I'm a writer, and I could (and probably should) write a creative letter, I decided instead to give you a glimpse of our past year through pictures. I thought long and hard about the decision to skimp on the writing part of the Christmas letter, and here are the reasons why I'm going with pictures:

*Pictures really do say a thousand words (and word counts matter a lot to writers).

*Because I'm such an awesome photographer? (And yes, the blurriness and red eye in a number of pictures was intentional.)

*Most people would rather look at pictures than read a bunch of boring stuff about my kids (except my mom, who already knows it all anyway!).

*Who has the time to read long Christmas letters these days (especially when the writer sends it two days before Christmas at the peak of busyness)?

*Even more importantly, who has time to write Christmas letters? (We're all too busy chatting on Twitter.)

*And that brings up another point. Do we even need Christmas letters when we "see" each other several times a day on Facebook and know what each other eats for breakfast, lunch, and dinner?

    Alright, no more excuses. The real reason I'm boycotting the writing part of this Christmas letter, is because I couldn't think of anything creative enough. Yes, I'm hanging my head in shame. I know, I know. I'm a writer. Shouldn't I be able to come up with something even slightly witty and entertaining for a Christmas letter?

    But no, I couldn't. I'm blaming my lack of creative energy on all the other writing I do. I pour out my heart and soul into my books and my blog, and have none left for the annual Christmas letter. So, wordless as I am, I've been left with no choice but to use pictures. (I hope you know I'm being slightly sarcastic!)

    Okay, so because I was actually boycotting the writing part of this letter, I'm going to stop writing now, and get on with the pictures!

    January . . .

    Sledding at City Forest
    Visiting Bethany House
    Celebrating hubby's big 4-0
    
    February . . . 

    Baking a chocolate cake
    Licking the beater (someone's gotta do the dirty work!)

    March & April . . .
    
    Attending a mother-daughter banquet
    Battling the flu
    
    May . . .

    Rescuing baby squirrels
    Visiting Kalamazoo's Air Museum
    Participating in the State Geography Bee
     
    June . . .
    
    Hiking at Audra State Park, WV
    Hanging out at the park for our annual
    Father's Day picnic
    Feeding our baby squirrels

    July . . .
    
    Swimming and sunshine!
    Giving LOTS of hugs
    Turning 13 (yes, our first teenager!)
    

    August . . .

    Hiking Sleeping Bear Sand Dunes
    Swimming in beautiful Lake Michigan
    Touring Greenfield Village in Detroit


    September . . .
    
    Holding my debut book for the first time
    Riding bikes

    October & November . . .
    
    Release of The Preacher's Bride!
    Hiking at Chippewa Nature Center
    Eating caramel apples at
    the apple orchard


    December . . .

    Merry Christmas from the fabulous five!
    
    Well, that's it! Our year in pictures. Of course snap shots can't tell the whole story, and we certainly had our share of aches and pains. But overall, we're counting our blessings.

    I hope you've been able to count your blessings too.

    Merry Christmas from our family to yours.

    The Hedlunds

    16 comments:

    1. How fun to see what you've been up to this year. I love all the pictures.

      I hope the Fabulous Five and their busy parents enjoy a blessed celebration of Christmas.

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    2. Oh I love this, Jody! I love reading about families, but the pictures DO say it so perfectly! You have a beautiful family and thanks for sharing!

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    3. Beautiful post, beautiful people!

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    4. Thank you, ladies! Merry Christmas to each of you! :-)

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    5. How cool!! Love seeing a glimpse into your family. What a handsome bunch you all are!

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    6. What a lovely gift to give us... this glimpse of your year in review! Since becoming one of your blog readers I've felt privileged to have an inside peek at you as a person and your life as a writer (and now published author). Thank you for sharing. Have a well-deserved Christmas break and a truly blessed and joy-filled time with your family.

      Carol

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    7. LOVE THIS!!! Thanks for the glimpse into your year... your kiddos are so precious!

      MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!!

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    8. Love, love, love this idea! I am 100% right there with you on ZERO creativity left over for my Christmas newsletter, which has morphed into a New Year's letter here in procrastination land.

      Your family is beautiful, your cat is HUGE, and I've truly enjoyed my visit here, Jody.

      Merry, merry Christmas to you!

      PS~Do you mean "Greenfield Village" in Detroit (Dearborn) or is there truly a Deerfield Village? We love Greenfield Village (and the Henry Ford Museum)!

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    9. Ugh! Thank you for pointing out my typo, Julie! That's what I get for doing this at the last minute! :-)

      And thank you ALL for the Christmas wishes! Merry Christmas to you and yours in return! Blessings!

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    10. Oh I'm glad I popped over! What a blessed year you've all had! Here's to double the blessings in 2011! XOXO ~T

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    11. Oh I'm glad I popped over! What a blessed year you've all had! Here's to double the blessings in 2011! XOXO ~T

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    12. What a wonderful pictorial walk through the past year with your family. A banner year for sure!

      A very merry Christmas to you and the whole family and all the best in 2011!

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    13. Nice, Jody! I especially like the last one where they're all lined up. Precious! Have a blessed Christmas and great New Year!

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    14. Looked like a full and fun year. Here's hoping to another year of fun

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    15. A filled with blessings, for sure. The photos are great. Wonderful smiles!

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    16. This is my kind of letter, although I also like the "written" stories, too!

      May you and your family have a wonderful New Year!!

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