Christmas Destressing

This post isn't about the holidays making you more stressed out, it's about me unwinding with a little holiday cheer!  It's been a day.  I knew this was going to be a rough week, with vacation so near.  I came home agitated and I know I was short with FIL.  I really tried not to be as grumpy with the kids as I was yesterday, and I was pretty successful in that aspect, but by the time I got home I was done.  We've been dealing with more of the truck issue today.  FIL was able to get quotes from the mechanic and fax them over to our dealer, who's balking at the cost right now.  Per the DMV, the dealer [statutorily] has to either fix the truck or buy it back.  So, more pushing and advocating on our parts in the near future, as if I don't do that enough in my daily life.

So, what's a girl to do to relieve stress?  I sat down on my computer and began playing with Shutterfly again and customizing my free Christmas cards.  It was nice to tune out for a bit, and reflect back on the year.  I spent the time going through my iPhoto and trying to find all of the albums that contain DH and I...you know, together...in the same city, same state, same country.  :)  This drastically reduces the amount of photos I have to choose from, which makes the decision process easier.  Putting my card together didn't take long at all.  I found six pictures and narrowed it down to three, edited them to make them sepia-toned to coordinate with the card, and voila!  Curious about how it turned out?

What do you think?

I was talking to DH while I was creating the card, trying to figure out how I was going to share it with him, since he doesn't have a reliable internet connection right now.  I ended up snapping a picture of my computer screen and texting it to him.  I was kind of surprised, I really liked it!  DH isn't really into holidays, and usually doesn't have much to stay about these sorts of things, but he thought it looked really nice.  I loved the sepia option, since it looks so much better than it would if I kept those photos in full color.  The fifty free card offer ended up being a huge savings for me, and I'm definitely grateful for the chance to be a participating blogger!

The photo on the left is from my aunt's funeral.  She was the aunt that inspired this card, with the pine boughs that remind me of those that decorated the mountain cabin she owned with my uncle.  The picture in the center is from DH's homecoming.  I love how genuinely happy you can tell we are in this photo.  [Psst!  It looks like I have JBF hair!]  The photo on the right is on the balcony of our hotel room when we went to the marriage retreat in Myrtle Beach.  DH was skeptical about whether he'd enjoy the trip or not, but we had a great time and rode out there on our bikes.  It was the last vacation we had together, courtesy of the Army.

So, we'll see how they turn out when they arrive!  I need to review the Christmas card list with DH and probably throw together a newsletter when I can find some cute paper to coordinate with our card.

What about you?  What's your holiday tradition in terms of cards?  Do you do them, or do you not bother?  Have you started thinking about it, or do you throw it together at the last minute?