December 2022 Monthly Newsletter Cover Article

Christmas is nearly here! Celebrate family homecomings, look back at sweet memories, and capture your favorite moments as you welcome 2023.

Christmas is nearly here! For some of us, that means the tree is trimmed, the rooftop is decorated with lights, and warm, delicious holiday treats are baking in the oven. For others (myself included), we’re scrambling to find time to make it all (or at least the most important parts of it) happen. Whether or not every detail is planned to perfection, Christmas will be upon us soon, and a new year is just over the horizon.

Cozying up with family is my favorite part of the Christmas season. This is the first year in quite a while that the Christmas season signifies a grand homecoming. In years past, I was the one coming home, but this year, it will be our two sons, who have been away at college since mid-August. They’ll return home for their holiday break in just two short weeks. To say I’m excited is an understatement!

I can’t wait to see how they have changed over the past few months and find out what college life is really like for them.

I also plan to reinstate one of my favorite family traditions from my childhood – family photo shows.

My father was an avid photographer. He put together wonderful slide shows and home movies that captured some of our best memories together as a family. He pulled out his slide and film projectors every year around the holidays, and we’d gather to reminisce. We’d laugh about the experiences we shared, the memories we created, and the crazy clothes and hairstyles of the 1970s. With the boys returning home for the holiday season, we are excited to see everyone’s collections of memories captured throughout the year in photos and videos.

When I was a kid, we were lucky to have one roll (just 24 photos!) of a special event, and rarely did we capture our day-to-day happenings. Now, with cameras on our cellphones, there’s an endless amount of space available to snap dozens of photos in just a few moments. With a plethora of images floating around our computers, phones, and online accounts, I think it’s even more essential to take the time, like my dad did, to curate the most important ones into an album or somewhere safe to visit from time to time.

With 2023 on the horizon, we look back on 2022 and all we’ve accomplished and enjoyed, and we look forward to the new year — a fresh slate — to set new goals and experience unique moments and events. What will you aspire to experience and accomplish in 2023?

From my family to you and yours, Merry Christmas, happy holidays, and happy New Year!