When I was a little girl, I remember the mail at Christmas bringing lots and lots of Christmas cards. And I loved reading and folks my parents knew and seeing the pictures. My mother was very good at correspondence so they received a lot of Christmas cards. This year, it seems Christmas cards are few and far between. I keep hearing that from everybody. My little Santa pocket decoration that holds our cards is usually filled to the brim. Not quite yet this year. But I'm still hopeful. And yet, I'm a bit to blame myself. I haven't sent mine out yet either. My poor excuse is that I can't figure out my Excel file with all my addresses to make labels. And I'm sorry, but I'm too lazy to hand write all those addresses. Hopefully I'll get the labels made this weekend and start an assembly line with my kids stuffing envelopes, pasting labels and stamps. I've even written a Christmas letter this year. So I need to get that printed. I know some people don't like reading letters but I love it! It's like having a cup of coffee with friends that live far away. Our lives get so crazy and we lose track so easily. I love reading what my friends are doing and what their kids are up to. I love seeing their pictures every year and feel like that proverbial aunt pinching the cheek and saying, "My how they've grown!" But sometimes those Christmas letters are hard to read. I remember when a friend wrote that her 16 year old son had passed away that year. I didn't know. And I was so glad she'd managed to write about it and send it out. Because I wanted to know my friend was hurting so I could pray for her. So I could write her. So I could grieve with her. This year, I'll be writing about the loss of my father and my husband's grandmother. Some years are like that.

So, what do you think? Do you like Christmas cards? Christmas letters? Or do you think we're killing our planet with all the wasted paper?