Peace, Love, Joy

As I mentioned earlier, Shutterfly is offering 50 cards to bloggers who blog about their Christmas cards.

Last yeat at this time, the thought of Christmas cards, a tree, decorations, and presents all made me so incredibly sad. I was so looking forward to sending out Christmas cards from the Jones family with Ayden's sweet face on them. All the joy of the holidays was gone. I had no desire to celebrate or take part in any traditions. It was just too hard. This year, it's still hard to face the holidays without Ayden, but now that Collen is with us, it's important that we put ourselves back into the spirit of the holidays, traditions, and celebrating because he is definitely worth celebrating! In this season of remembering the reason for the season, I'm excited about glorifying Christ with our family and taking in every second of Collen's first holiday season.

Over at Shutterfly, there are tons of Christmas cards to choose from. I thought this one was fitting for what we've been through over the past year and what we have regained by having Collen become a part of our family.

We have learned what it means to be at Peace...despite the circumstances. We have added so much more Love. And Joy has been restored to our lives.

I am looking forward to using this card design for our Christmas cards. It's perfect for us and where we are right now. So, friends and family...be on the lookout for this card and some adorable pictures of Mr. Collen. Oh, and Jeremy and I may make a cameo....we'll see.

If you're looking for gifts ideas, head over to Shutterfly and check out their options. They have customizable calendars that are sure to be a hit with family.

· Christmas photo cards to http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/christmas-photo-cards
· calendars to http://www.shutterfly.com/calendars
· holiday photo cards to http://www.shutterfly.com/cards-stationery/holiday-cards


The holidays can be tough for a lot of people. The holidays, although a bit happier this year, will still be a struggle for us. Last year was especially hard, but we had such wonderful people in our lives who reached out and helped us remember that we weren't alone. There are families who are facing the holidays without a child, a parent, a loved one....and it's going to hurt to face the coming weeks without that special person. If you know someone who is facing a particularly tough time this holiday season, reach out. Tell them you're thinking of them and that you love them. Tell them that they aren't alone. Acknowledge the loss and how difficult it must be and just give them a hug...send a card...anything. It helps.